The Nateland Podcast - #10 Stand-Up Comedy
Episode Date: September 2, 2020This episode, we talk about what we know best - stand-up comedy. Nate shares stories about his climb up the comedy ladder in New York City, performing on late night television, and milestones he's rea...ched along the way in his comedy journey.  Podcast produced by Nate & Laura Bargatze Recording & Editing by Genovations Media https://www.natebargatze.com https://www.allthingscomedy.com https://www.genovationsmedia.com Email - Nateland@NateBargatze.com
Transcript
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what's up everybody this is nate bargetzi we're here at the nateland podcast once again
this show's still happening still going on i'm sitting with the young Aaron Weber and the wise Brian Bates.
The wiser.
The wisiest of wisest.
You guys have been awesome as always.
We love you all.
You've been very nice.
Still, we're keeping it rolling.
You're making it seem, you know, it's like it was a good choice to start this podcast.
This is how I started my comedy career.
When you try to decide, you always get asked,
how did you know that you're supposed to do it?
I got CMT Comedy Stage very early, five years in or something.
Five years in, I had a TV credit.
I was like, oh, all right.
I'm clearly supposed to be doing this thing.
I feel like this podcast is like that
where it's like we're what eight episodes in and you know we're getting a lot of people watching
a lot of the nice comments like people enjoy it this is 10 i think right 10 episodes in
we're 10 episodes in yeah uh so it's you know it's a good thing because then we get all these
people listening and you know if we wrote out if we never grown past what we have now, we did it.
We did it.
And we don't want anybody else.
So if you're new to this, get out of here.
We already got our people.
All right.
As usual, we're going to start with the comments that I'd like to read through all you guys' comments.
And as usual, if you don't like this, fast forward it.
Or I think some people only read the comments, guys' comments. And as usual, if you don't like this, fast forward it.
Or I think some people only read the comments, to be honest.
My wife's more of a fan of the comments than the whole show.
It's a fun part of the podcast, dude. I enjoy doing it every week.
I enjoy doing it, too.
So, yeah, it's good.
And my wife's never listened past the comments.
And she's a producer on the podcast.
We just gave her something something she doesn't even know
what it is i don't either but we're figuring it out uh all right first comment more j881 all i
can say is thank you my wife and i are police officers in kansas city and in today's climate
it is very difficult to unplug from the news and find something unbiased and generally funny. This is a great way for us to disconnect from reality and just laugh for a
while.
We were looking,
we really look forward to every Wednesday.
Thank you.
And that's it.
That almost be the bio of the show.
Honestly,
I might put that as the bio of the show.
It's that's what you want it to be.
That's what this is about.
That's awesome.
It's,
uh,
you,
if you're here for you thinking you gotta make you you know i don't there's enough right and go listen to those
that's go go if you want to you're gonna get riled up go get riled up sometimes you got to
get riled up that's good and sometimes i mean it gets the police off i mean it's got to be
in pure insanity uh and you know just wants to go home it's a police officer. I mean, it's got to be in pure insanity.
And, you know, just wants to go home.
It's like watching old Seinfeld episodes.
Yeah, it's very nice.
I think we have the old Seinfeld episode of podcast.
Yep.
That's what a comment.
No, it's the opposite.
No, I actually say it's the opposite.
Peter Bridge, when Bruce told the story about the woman,
I like how it's now just, I mean, it's not even.
I can't even find one that calls me by my real name.
Yeah.
I looked.
And it's what's so, it's just how quickly it goes in.
You know what I mean?
Like, it's not like where it's an obvious, we're making fun of a joke.
When Bruce told the story about the woman labeling, I mean, it's just like not like a breeze.
When Bruce told the story about the woman labeling him as worried, quite literally made me pee those chicks just totally nailed it he still gives off the worried vibe no offense bryce
uh yeah worried is i mean that's unbelievable that'd be the name of your album worried
it's the name of my life yeah you really should do your next album should be worried
my next apple it's just you're being you're going to have to do one now.
The people are going to want to hear it.
Yeah.
You know, everybody go buy his first album.
It's still out there.
But Worried is a great name for it.
I thought about that story all week.
Yeah.
Thanks, guys.
Thanks, guys.
Appreciate it.
Fruits to Nate 1007. Sounds7 sounds like i mean some of these are
like uh like you're in jail like it's a prison you know first date 1007 to the stand did you
this podcast could go up for 500 episodes and each one would have a moment where nate references
the seinfeld episode i would actually love to see an episode of Nate Land devoted to the topic of Seinfeld. Yes.
We do want to do that
for sure. We should have almost done it last
time. That's when John came in.
He's an enormous
Seinfeld fan.
We wanted to have him. He's 22
and a big Seinfeld fan.
He's obsessed with it as we are. He knows everything.
We should have done a Seinfeld episode.
It gets worried that you don't think who's going to want to listen to a two hour an
hour and a half Seinfeld episode like uh we do we like it but if somebody doesn't like Seinfeld
they're out you know uh so we will do a Seinfeld episode maybe we'll do it as in just an extra one
and that way people that want it can have it and then the other people
are not forced into
or might make those people
listen to it. Just force
them down.
Non-linear car.
Here I am counting Seinfeld references
then they proceed to talk about Seinfeld
for 30 minutes. Best episode yet.
Gold, Jerry. Gold.
He gets it.
Ace here. 30 minutes best episode yet. Gold, Jerry, gold. Yeah, he gets it. He gets it.
Ace here.
Bilbo's PBS pick is underrated.
That's a pretty good choice for one channel.
Thank you.
Bilbo.
I don't know if I should thank them or be insulted.
Bilbo's, I mean, that's a crazy name.
Aaron pointed out someone called me breakfast breakfast is unbelievable breakfast is as good as worried i mean someone called and this i don't
think it's on here but it was in the comments i mean breakfast is unreal that's amazing that's
that's the best one i've heard just to call him him, I don't know, is breakfast coming up?
It's got the same amount of syllables as Brian.
It's got the BR.
Yeah.
It's perfect.
And it's so ridiculous.
Man.
Yeah.
Breakfast is good.
Frenaham, Nannium, Franhanium.
Seriously, how did Arrested Development not get mentioned?
There's so many great episodes and
storylines I agree even though I was more of the first run of the Arrested Development I didn't
really give it much of a chance on that second run I was also late to it um I was very late to
Arrested Development and then I watched it later and loved it and then but I haven't really given
the Netflix stuff a chance uh yeah we should you know we learned like last week the television episode
it was just kind of uh you know sometimes when we're choosing this stuff it can get very broad
and uh it can be too broad which is not good and so sometimes when like last week you felt like we
were reading a lot i was reading you know a lot of information which is all stuff that's kind of
interesting but it's like you know we're trying to figure out the rhythm of this,
and we're going to slowly keep getting better and better at it.
But last week, it did feel – we should have just done TV episodes,
and so we will.
We'll make it up, make people watch it again.
But Arrested Development is great.
It's great.
It's an amazing show.
Yeah.
Yeah, unbelievable show.
them it is great it's great it's an amazing show yeah yeah unbelievable show tanya tanya coveric i waited for an hour and 50 minutes for someone to mention game of thrones and y'all just passed
on it like it was nothing sigh you should try it again best show hands down uh has any of us
watched game of thrones i've never seen it oh yeah, yeah. I was a huge fan. Oh, yeah. You got in late, though, right? I started late,
but I caught up.
And that last season,
I was in...
Tell everybody what happened.
I was in Amsterdam
when one of the big
final episodes happened.
Oh, yeah.
And I found a way
to watch it there.
Yeah.
They don't allow Game of Thrones?
Well, there was like...
The hotel you're at
did not have free HBO?
It did not.
Really?
In Amsterdam? No.
Yeah.
But yeah, it's a great show.
How'd you watch it?
I had to go through...
Even online, it somehow was blocking it, but I forgot how.
Somehow I found a way to watch it on my laptop.
Is the show worth watching now, even as disappointed as people are at that last season?
I think so.
Okay.
Maybe I'll go watch it one day.
I know nothing about it.
Yeah, we haven't watched it.
I watched the first...
I'm not a fantasy guy.
I'm not sci-fi.
I'm not fantasy.
You know,
I mean, I like Star Wars,
but I'm not...
I was never obsessed
with Star Wars.
Yeah.
I'm not even a big superhero
I like them
I go to all of them
but I'm just
it's not my thing
and I try to watch
Game of Thrones
I watched that first season
I just don't care
like
I got done with it
I need to give it
another go
the other one
The Wire
never a big
gigantic fan of that
yeah I think you mentioned
that last week
oh
alright
already in reruns yeah yeah never a big jack never seen it yeah i think you mentioned that last week oh all right uh
yeah uh yeah uh i didn't listen last week's episode guys it wasn't that good we checked out
jessica van de put van de put when aaron talks about how it's frustrating when you have a show
you really like and just don't know anyone else that watches it that's me and this podcast you guys are really crushing it though and i love every second of it
thank you jessica that is very she's like you watch nateland they're like what are you talking
about when they mention yeah i mean nateland's gotta it's got to be like what do you watch what
yeah do we what what's something i can't think of something that i've heard about
or i've watched that no one else i watched episodes is that what it's called the ricky
gervais show no i did watch episode that was great richard said that that was a great uh
the great show that was extras right extras extras episodes is the showtime with uh matt
leblanc oh yeah and i've watched all of those and it's great you know the show great rob schneider Oh, extras. Episodes is the Showtime with Matt LeBlanc. Oh, yeah.
And I've watched all of those.
And it's great.
You know another show?
Great Rob Schneider show.
Rob Schneider's show on Netflix.
It's about him.
It's his wife.
Jamie Lissile's in it.
Never even heard of it. It's good?
Yeah, it's good.
It's his real wife?
It's his real wife.
Yeah.
And I forget what it's called.
But it's great. And I think the new forget what it's called I like but it's
it's great
and I think the new season
came out
it was
it was one that I was like
oh let me see this
and you know
I've
I've kind of interacted
with Rob
I don't really know him
uh
but
I was like
yeah let me check this out
and then
I like just kind of
went through it
I enjoyed it
I thought it was very
you know
episodes is
uh
like that with Matt LeBlanc
that was a big show but I loved that you know and then like that with Matt LeBlanc. That was a big show, but I loved that.
And then, yeah, Ricky Gervais' Extra is awesome.
The end of Extra is great.
It's got a very, very sweet, sweet moment to it.
One of my favorite sweet moments.
And I'll be honest with you, I don't really remember it,
but I just remember it being one of my favorite.
Trent Stewart, growing up in a pastor's home,
we had some interesting things happen.
Once during service, a lady asked my dad and the entire church to pray for Marlena because
she is in the hospital in a coma.
We were worried sick.
Come to find out it was Marlena on Days of Our Lives.
Just put worry in parentheses.
That's got to be, I mean, just 80s probably, right?
Days of Our Lives?
Well, just where someone would ask that.
Oh, yeah, maybe.
Like, I don't think it's going to happen now.
Yeah.
But it's when, like, life was a little more innocent.
And so, like, even in a smaller town, it's 80s.
But in a smaller town, it might as well be the 50s, too.
Like, they're just very, like, sweet old ladies that are...
So, is she implying that the woman thought Marlena was a real person?
I just...
They told her to pray for it to tv girl so
yeah i mean i'm sure she did okay you know but or something she was just still worried like i you
know we were worried yeah chris evans oh it's the chris evans probably uh isn't that famous guy
chris evans captain america yeah captain america uh so this is from captain america embarrassing as a kid i used to think that the audience laugh track and sitcoms was the
laughter of other people at home watching at the same time that's awesome we had one of those giant
late early giant late 80s early 90s entertainment centers in our living room four foot tall speakers
and i would sit next up next to one of the speakers and laugh as loud as
I could. Anytime the laugh track played, just hoping that the other people watching would hear
my laugh over everyone else's. I regrettably believed that until I was probably around 10
years old. And I had friends over and tried to get them to yell stuff in the speakers,
thinking other kids at home would talk back. My friends finally broke the news to me that I'm stupid.
Love the show.
I look forward to every Wednesday now knowing I get to hear Nate ragging on Bryson worried
Bates any chance he gets.
That's an unbelievable story.
That is so funny, dude.
That's great.
Oh, man.
So did he think shows without laugh tracks, just nobody was watching them?
Yeah.
And I mean, getting them to talk,
I mean, and to go,
how much you got to build up
to get brave enough to go,
I'm going to tell my friends to yell into the speaker.
Like, you know, the conflict,
because at first you're like, is that true?
You probably second guessed it,
then you assume it.
And then you do have to cross a line
that you're willing to bring people
into your insane question.
And I guess his parents just hadn't broke the news to him.
I was going to say his family knew this was happening and they let it go on.
Oh, I hope they did.
I hope they did.
That's unbelievable.
That's great.
Robert, fun fact about the Marine Biologist ending.
The episode was supposed to end on George walking to the ocean to help the the beach well but the live audience didn't give it much of a reception so larry dave wrote
george's final the sea was angry that day my friends monologue with him pulling the golf ball
out of the bull hole on the spot jason alexander memorized it in 10 minutes they filmed it and got
the biggest laugh in series history it's pretty crazy yeah uh great scene such a gigantic scene
and for it to be uh yeah just to be like last minute i feel like that's how stuff works man
you know the longest i would say the longest laugh recorded uh i always heard ever on tv
was jack benny and uh he uh he would he was known for,
comedian,
known for being very cheap.
And so, you know,
and he was on like
Tonight Show
or Ed Sullivan Show
whenever he was doing it.
And he did,
he said,
your money or your life?
And he just looked at the camera.
Like he said,
a guy went to Rob
and said,
money or your life?
And the whole country knows like,
well,
he's so cheap.
Yeah.
And that was like,
it was like a,
maybe a full minute or something.
I'm going to have to look it up where it was the live.
I just lost their mind.
Didn't even say anything.
Just to look to the camera.
Just to look.
Yeah.
Cause I mean,
everybody that's like,
that's,
you know,
they got it.
Yeah.
They got it.
Zach is nobody.
I just saw that west wing
is reuniting for some kind of special aaron is about to have a wreck any moment now are you
gonna watch the new are you gonna watch the special would you watch in the car are you
gonna sit if i have a road trip coming up i'll have to i guess yeah that's dangerous you won't
uh i know but say you're at home do you go sit in the car and watch it, even if you don't drive somewhere?
I used to do that with music.
If I got an album that came out, my favorite place to listen to music is in the car.
So I would go out in my driveway and sit in the car.
I've never done that with shows, though.
It seems kind of crazy.
Like when you lived at home with your parents, or now?
Always.
Always.
Yeah.
But especially back then.
I've never listened to an album like that. You don't like listening to music in the car? Or we've talked. Always. Yeah. But especially back then. I've never listened to an album like that.
You don't like listening to music in the car?
Or we've talked about this.
Yeah.
I mean, I like listening to music, but I've never thought a new album came out.
I got to go listen.
You go sit there for the full hour or 15 minutes.
Sometimes.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And you're just listening to the song.
Well, I like being alone.
Yeah.
And I like having surround sound.
Yeah.
Get the AC going. Yeah. It's a good time in there. Yeah. Yeah. And I like having surround sound. Yeah. Get the AC going.
It's a good time in there.
Yeah, yeah.
I like that.
I'm just talking about that album thing.
Have you ever listened to an album full?
Like just to hear.
I haven't gone to the car just to listen to it.
But you've listened, you've sat and been like in one sitting.
A few, a handful of people will have albums where I got to listen to the whole thing.
Yeah.
And just for the, just to see like, how was it?
Is it good?
I like this. I like that. I just need to, I want to consume it as quickly as whole thing. Yeah. And just for the, just to see like, how was it? Is it good? I like this.
I like that.
I just need to,
I want to consume it as quickly as I can.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Uh,
okay.
Uh,
no,
I think a lot of people do that.
I think that's a big deal.
I mean,
I just saying,
I just never,
it was never my bag,
you know,
cup of tea.
Is that how you say it?
Bag?
Nevermind bag.
I don't think I've heard that. Cup of tea I've heard you say it bag never mind bag i don't think i've heard that
yeah never my bag of tricks man uh i don't know man holden lano henry how could you not mention
the threat level midnight episode of the are the nap episode worst seinfeld the office podcast i've
ever heard that's that is fair wow know, we didn't get into it.
Again, we should have got into more of the episodes.
I think we will do, we could do an Office episode.
We might do a Seinfeld and Office episode and compare those two
because those are our two favorite shows.
And then, so we will do, we can.
You know, we should have probably broke down more episodes,
to be honest, now looking back.
Threat Level Midnight's terrible.
Well, I agree
I was about to say
we did talk about
we talked about
Jumping the Shark
you thought
Threat Level Midnight
that episode was terrible
I was not a fan
of that episode
it's one of the worst
with Steve Carell
I skip it every time
I rewatch it
yeah
yeah
yeah it is stupid
but it was like
almost leading up
you think that's
Jumping the Shark though
because that's
they've talked he's written this script forever so they that's, it's, it's, they've talked to,
he's written this script forever.
So they're like,
well,
everybody's going to want to watch this movie.
And he made it like the idea of the,
the idea of the episode is actually brilliant.
Like you could see when they finally,
they probably thought of that.
He's a script writer.
He's writing threat level midnight.
And they thought we're going to see when we put it out.
And this is going to be a gigantic episode.
Because who's not going to, a character on TV has written a movie.
You're going to eventually want to see what he wrote.
And so in the idea stage of it, I bet it was like, yeah, dude, this is going to be enormous.
And I think that that was a point where the office was on the backside.
And maybe if they throw that in season four, you're like, this is unbelievable.
But that's what jumping the shark is.
Throwing something in when it's on the backside to see if it can save it.
Yeah.
I thought when it goes from good to bad like it
just is like yeah but to your point it took advantage i don't think of it as trying to save
it i think of it as it's you're taking advantage of your audience and now you're like we can do
something insane yeah so let's try something insane and then that you lose everybody yeah
which is probably about when you start losing people to begin with. I'll give that episode credit.
They bring in characters that hadn't been on the show in years.
Right.
Roy comes back.
And a few others.
So either they shot that, they were smart enough to shot that way back,
or they just brought them back.
Yeah.
Probably brought them back.
Like, yeah.
They would just bring them back right maybe but uh their
hairstyles and they don't look like and all that they did a good job that makes sense yeah
caleb elliott with every intro nate does he with every intro nate does he sounds that wasn't me
everybody so don't you know with every intro n, does he sound like he is not sure what podcast he's on?
And who is on the podcast with him?
Okay.
Maybe.
I could see that.
I mean, I read these words.
I look at words.
I don't know what these words are about to be.
So I could see it.
Does that sound right?
With every intro Nate does, he sounds like he is not sure what podcast he's on.
Okay.
A comma really would have changed the game there.
Yeah.
And that's mid-sentence.
Right.
So what are you guys doing later?
I was listening to this podcast.
With every intro Nate does,
he sounds like he is not...
I still can't get it out.
With every intro Nate does,
he sounds like he is not sure what podcast he is on.
And who is on the podcast with him?
Explanation point.
With him.
Caleb Elliott's a very funny comedian.
He opens for Sinbad. Oh, really?
Oh, that's cool.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah. I think I met him here. I don't know.
I haven't met him, but I've seen him open for Sinbad.
That's funny. All right.
Check Caleb Elliott out.
Jesse Matheson.
They should make an Aaron Webber secret genius t-shirt.
Yeah.
I think you're Jesse Matheson.
Your uncle.
Are you a secret genius?
No, dude.
Have you ever had your IQ tasted?
Tasted. Tasted.
Tasted.
IQ tasted.
Have you ever walked into just a glass door?
Or no, you always see it.
Is that what being a genius is? Yeah.
Being able to see glass?
Yeah.
Do you always see it?
We have a very low level of genius.
Yeah, well, by that metric, yeah, I'm a genius for sure.
You've never walked into a glass door? I've walked in all kinds of stuff yeah because in my mind i'm a lot smaller than i am
and i forget that sometimes so yeah i'll clip the side of doorways and all the time dude i think
that's genius though because a genius does dumb stuff like that. That's how, that's how, you know, because I'm really good.
And I, because all I got is to be aware of my surroundings.
So my wife's uncle, we went to go, you know, this was whenever it was five, six, seven
years ago.
We all go eat with her family and we go to this restaurant and he's like
six seven or six eight huge and we get done what we're all sitting there eating they go to leave
it was like a sunday like after church like you know it's like that kind of vibe like it's hot
outside everybody's wearing nice clothes like and we're eating and then he they go to leave and he's
an older older guy and uh i mean walks out the door
and it's a door and i mean look i get it it's a door with just glass like it doesn't make sense
that the glass is there and man he just boom just popped it dude with his head and just was like
and you heard it i saw the whole thing and, I mean, you just laughed so much.
Like, it's, I mean, you felt so bad because he, bless his heart, like, but he, and the
forehead, where his forehead was, they couldn't even reach to clean it because it was too
tall.
He's 6'8".
Like, they had to get, I mean, no one could ever, no one could reach.
It's still there.
They gotta get a ladder.
Dude, I mean, when you watch someone walk through glass, it's so funny because there's no yeah there's no hesitation really tell when it's in a true accident
yeah because there's no bracing for it yeah just that video of that one there's one video girl she
does it like three times like there's it's glass and so there's a door, and she just keeps like one, two, and she keeps making these turns.
And then does it again.
I mean, it's remarkable, dude.
It's such a weird feeling because, one, you kind of hurt yourself,
and your brain is so shocked with what just happened.
The air just stopped me.
It's just a weird thing.
Yeah, well, I mean, there's no stop.
I mean, that's what's's crazy just how confident it is yeah uh chris thomas i swear if nate calls nelson nelson nelson
ray means one more time i'm going to scream 80s rock lyrics tell you we've got a lot of people
hung up on some weird stuff on this like i mean we've had some people get mad at one thing and
then they just it's a wrap but you know what what? I get it. I'm like that too.
What do you say?
It's Nielsen.
Nielsen.
I just say to Chris, we got to pick our battles here.
I mean.
And Nelson.
Yeah.
I say Nelson.
I think this is more of an accent issue than a reading issue.
Oh, Aaron, you're being so nice.
Because you kind of say it, you sound, when you just said it just now, it kind of sounded
like Nelson.
Nielsen.
Yeah. Nelson. I was talking like Nelson. Nelson. Yeah.
Nelson.
I was talking about Nelson.
My buddy Nelson, he does his ratings.
This is the first time I'm hearing about this Nelson.
Nate knows a guy.
I know a guy named Nelson.
I thought this was.
The Nelson ratings.
I go, well, they're doing pretty good.
He watched the whole episode last night.
And they're like, wow.
I would always be in every conversation. Every conversation they had. pretty good he watched the whole episode last night and they're like wow and then i mean that's
i would always be in every conversation every conversation they had it was how the nelson
ratings was like pretty good he stayed up till 10 p.m last night and they're like god did he watch
the nelson ratings are saying people are watching it nelson's watching it they're watching the whole
thing just have no idea that that they were not talking about my buddy Nelson.
I thought, I can't, but you know.
What about the Nelson ratings?
I'm like, you know Nelson too?
He is guy.
He knows everybody.
Amazes me every time.
I was in Pittsburgh and a guy brought something up and goes,
I've been reading about the Nelson ratings.
I was like, this is before the internet.
Nick A, speaking of TV shows and how timing programming has changed so much with streaming in the Netflix world.
I have kids that are six and eight.
For the first time, we watched a show as a family.
Disney's Mandalorian.
Mandalorian.
Mandalorian.
My kids were so completely confused at the fact that we had to wait until next week to
be able to watch the next episode. We literally had to explain the process to them because they
thought we were holding out and making them wait until next week. And because it was bedtime,
we weren't letting them watch one more episode. So like, cause they were watching it because
that's what they did with that show. Yep. They do it one a week. Yeah. I, I'm a, I think it's,
I think you should have to wait. I do too. I think that's very underrated in the fact of you excited to, you know, just jamming through them.
I don't think, you know, I think with Netflix, like Narcos, I love Narcos, but all the guys on Narcos, that show's probably so watched.
And if they spread it out week by week, I think it's talked about like it's The Sopranos.
But because everybody watches it on their own time, no one really talks about it.
And it's this amazing show that we all love.
But none of those guys are super famous.
Like if you saw them on the street, I mean, you might not even realize it at first.
But if they aired it every other week and it
was a must watch tv thing then those people would be super famous because people would talk about it
but you can't talk about narcos now you can't talk about anything because you're like do you
watch narcos like i haven't seen you all right you got to find the guy that does and then that
guy gets done is like i want to talk about narcos and you're like i don't care man yeah like ozark's
got one more season and i'm looking forward to it.
But by the time I get up that morning,
somebody's already going to watch the finale
and they'll be tweeting about it.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I build on Ozark.
I need to probably give it a go.
I'm surprised you said that about Narcos.
To me, Narcos is a show
like we were talking about
that no one else watches except us.
I think Narcos is the most amazing show. But I like that stuff stuff but do you think a lot of people watch it yeah oh you do i
do i do they're making how they're making more i think they are i love cartel stuff yeah i do too
uh they uh we should do a cartel episode i love cartel stuff narcos is amazing but they did uh
i need to watch ozark oark, I just bailed on.
It was like I watched it...
I think I watched it too much,
too close to Breaking Bad.
I felt like it was trying to be Breaking Bad.
And then I just was like,
I can't do this again.
And I needed a break.
I didn't love the beginning of the thing.
It was like they were...
I mean, I'm not ruining this
because I haven't seen him.
But it was like they're into money laundering.
And then they move to the ozarks and get into more money laundering like that's like that was like all right like is that what i gotta believe like you gotta they're like
all right we're safe now we're in the ozarks how you doing sir what do you do for a living oh you're
a money launderer a gigantic one that's a big problem yeah well we are too that's funny that
we met here sarah thomason it's weird that it's a radio show they put on tv he said on his podcast
episode that is being shown on youtube i think maybe was it john that said it's weird to think
about when they went from a radio show and just started airing it on television? She's pointing out that John's an idiot.
I agree with that.
I think we even addressed
the irony at the time, I remember.
Yeah, okay.
Of saying it's all come full circle.
Yes.
We'll never let John ever
on this show ever.
He'll be on the Seinfeld Office episode
when we finally give him a proper episode to come on.
He's been talking
to a 20-year-old kid
about like,
you know,
when TVs were invented.
Like,
it felt,
I didn't,
I do love asking him like,
so what do you,
do you remember this?
Do you remember that?
You know,
it's because it's like
your first time feeling old.
Yeah.
I mean,
that's,
we can ask you that.
You're young too.
You're 28?
Yeah.
It's crazy, man.
It's crazy how young you are. You got your whole future ahead of you. Don You're young, too. You're 28? Yeah. It's crazy, man. It's crazy how young you are.
You got your whole future ahead of you.
Don't blow it, Aaron.
Don't blow it.
Thanks.
It's not a bright future.
Oh, you can hear in there.
Two more.
Taylor Smith, I love how Brady is like when your mom makes you take your
little brother with you and hang out with your friends but at the same time nate acts like there
is 20 years between them great stuff you guys are the best p.s this has bothered bothered me since
the second episode it's pronounced syncope meaning to faint like goats the fainting goats syncope my my uh neighbor texted me that too felix
psps i wonder how that guy had that fainted from laughing is doing how is that guy doing
uh i checked him uh he died yeah yeah i killed him uh trial coming up took a turn i thought
you should have not given that up uh now he uh he's fine i think yeah he never he did he did he i mean it was that
it was uh it's like when you're larynx or something it collapses because you're laughing
so hard it makes you faint huh huh uh it's very well thank you um chris johnson i'm pretty sure
nate scratches his forehead as a signal to stop talking about a certain subject.
That's funny.
Do I?
I don't ever notice that.
Now I'm going to notice it. I don't know.
Anytime I'm talking.
I'll be talking.
Yeah.
I don't think I would ever do that.
I think I would just say, hey, this is stupid.
I have not noticed that.
Yeah.
I would just go, this is dumb, and we need to move on.
John Slater, it's unbelievable how many times nate says unbelievable per episode uh i do say unbelievable a lot
i've always said it you know it's a good word yeah i think everybody says words the same i think even
every i always get i say like a lot, you know, like I went to the
store, you know, I, and I've even tried to work on it. I tried to make myself think about it. I do
it in my regular conversation to try to not say like in regular life, cause I'm trying to not
make it be into my act. But what people have to realize too in your act is about rhythm. It's
about conversation. You say like, most people say
like when they're doing normal conversations. So I've seen someone say, well, you think you're a
professional speaker. You would not say like, I'm not a professional speaker in the sense that I'm
not presenting. I'm not selling you something. I'm not, that person shouldn't say like, I'm a person
that's supposed to talk to where you think you mean you were just talking.
That's my job as a comic is to be like, oh, this is my buddy just talking.
Well, your buddy says like, and that's what I've got to be.
So it's like, that's where that stuff says.
And unbelievable.
I do say it a lot.
I do am conscious that I try not to overly do it.
But, you know, unbelievable.
That guy said that.
Yeah.
But, you know, unbelievable that guy said that.
Yeah.
I was seeing my neighbors.
My neighbor Dwayne saw him walking this morning.
And I was like, you listening to the podcast?
I mean, I like yelled at him like, yeah.
And he's like, I am.
I am.
Crime episode.
He's a little behind.
I go, we've done 50 more, Dwayne.
And then, all right.
So this episode, we get asked a lot about comedy,
about stand-up comedy.
So we're just going to do it.
We're going to dive into stand-up comedy.
We're going to do a stand-up comedy episode.
And this is going to be that episode.
And we're going to start it off this video.
Last week, we didn't do a video either.
I forgot. We had one of Aaron's videos, and we forgot to play it we forgot i don't think it was good and so we i think we did aaron a
favor yeah you know that's what a lot of people said yeah okay uh they uh no we i we just kind
of forgot because we had a guest it was a new thing there's a new thing. There's a lot going on. There's a lot going on. Holly was losing it, the dog.
My wife was gone again.
That messes everything up when she's not here.
So this week, we got a video,
and the video is a little sketch video I shot during COVID with my neighbors.
And I mean, you're going to see what it is,
trying to do stand-up comedy during COVID times.
It was a little fun little just sketch video that we've never put out.
And this is the premiere of doing it.
We shot it with my daughter, Harper, the other kids.
And with this group, we've all quarantined together.
We were a cul-de-sac that's quarantined together.
Blair, Carter, and Reese, and then Jack and Cole.
And so all the kids in our little neighborhood and uh they did a wonderful job so here's the here's the video my wife and i have
been married for 13 years and we have a seven-year-old daughter so it's getting pretty serious
that's it give it to me serious.
That's it. Give it to me.
I don't even know how you got it. So my daughter was two years old, we took her to Disney World
and we told our friends and they were like, I don't know why you're taking her to Disney World. I mean she's not going to remember it. You're just going to waste
your money. Alright, alright, okay. Where are you going? You know what? We're
better without them. I'll tell you that. This is better. I can tell you what, next
quarantine I'm gonna make sure I have a barber in my circle. You guys watching
Tiger King? Couple of you? No, nobody? Okay. Put your hands down. This is not a back and forth. I mean a gun misses. Tigers rarely miss. I won the Boston Comedy Festival and the New York Comedy Festival in the same year. I don't think, yeah, none of you did that, did ya? Guys, I am sorry. I raised my voice.
He was looking for his elderly wife and saw me with no shirt on and said, Olivia, I mean, I don't know who you offended more, me or Olivia.
How are y'all not getting this, all right?
These are good jokes.
Guys, we hurt my dad's feelings.
Please laugh even if it's fake.
my dad's feeling. Please laugh even if it's fake.
Thank you. Thank you. Try not to gain too much weight during this quarantine, you know.
I don't work out, you know, I've never worked out. My muscles are as loose as a goose.
What I have been doing is I just tell people I used to weigh 300 pounds and I've never weighed 300 pounds but I look pretty amazing for a guy that
used to weigh 300 pounds. Now we're cooking. Jack and Cole wish they could
see this I bet. What are y'all doing? Are you at a different show? That guy
sells insurance. I'm a professional comedian
all right there it is yeah not bad right right? Really funny. So the idea was the Tonight Show was trying to look for stuff,
and they talked to me about trying to shoot something,
and then I came up with this idea.
I guess they were like, no.
That's very funny, though.
Not having it.
It's a funny, cute video.
The kids are great.
Kids do great.
Doing comedy during the COVID times.
Got a couple golf sets back in my golf clubs uh but they're but it's yeah the kids were the kids did great and we did it and it was
hot uh baits edited that together put the music if you don't like it you know where to
complain about youtube will flag it yeah but it was
he edited it
I mean
it's a fun
it's a very
cute fun video
and
if you're listening at home
you can go
we're posted
on the socials
so you can go find it
so yeah
that's stand up comedy
alright everybody
this is Bell
on this episode
and that's
how you do
stand up comedy
also we're gonna do
We're gonna have Bates take the lead
I think it's a lot for
I think people can handle me reading the comments
And I think past that
It gets
It gets a bit much
So I get it guys
I'm dumb
Is that what y'all wanted
To me to say it?
So Bates, take it away.
All right.
So today we're talking about stand-up comedy.
That sounds like you're doing a project.
That sounded just like a student, did it not?
Okay.
Today, stand-up comedy.
Yeah.
All right.
You want to take it back?
I don't know.
I think I bring flavor into it
but go ahead all right three words in and i'm already struggling all right first we'll do a
brief history of stand-up comedy there's a podcast called the history of stand-up if you haven't seen
listen to that i would recommend it most of my information here came from wikipedia
uh but uh, 1930s.
I mean, stand-up comedy has been around to some degree since court gestures.
1800s.
Yeah, I do.
Yeah.
But you know, you'd probably be like, don't count them as stand-up comics.
That's like nowadays.
Yeah.
Like, I'm an impromptu.
Like, we're not doing the same thing.
Yeah.
They're like guitar comics back then.
Court gestures.
Like, you know, What would be their competitor?
Like a juggler?
If you're a chord jester and the juggler's like,
oh, we hang out, we do the same thing.
And you're like, all right, dude, take it easy.
They're a prop comic.
Yeah.
So for modern stand-up comedy,
like 1930s to the 50s kind of got a start.
Some of the big names,
Mobs Mabley, Jack Benny, Bob Hope, George Burns, Fred Allen, Milton Berle, and Frank Fay. And of got a start some of the big names mobs mabley jack benny bob hope georgia burns
fred allen milton burrow and frank faye and they got their start in either vaudeville or
on the chitlin circuit the that was vaudeville was up children's here's southern right or no
no i think that's black comics okay uh the chitlin circuit is yeah so oh so that's just black rooms and then vaudeville is
jewish wasn't only jewish new york we're already in trouble
i've never heard of vaudeville being a jewish thing yeah i thought it was just new york
yeah i think it is and then i think it was all jewish people were from new york not like
are you mean like that fair to say?
Is that right?
Like the Hamptons?
No, no, no, no, no.
I meant like
I think that back then
it was
I think all those guys
are Jewish.
Okay.
All of them are Jewish.
Moms maybe is not.
Well, that's arguable.
Okay.
I don't know what that means.
No, but Jack Benny was
like it was
I think
they used to go travel up there.
I think it was like a big, the rich people of New York would go and travel to those vaudevilles,
and they would stay.
Cat skills.
Cat skills is what I was thinking about when I said the Hamptons.
Yeah.
Yes.
Maybe I'm thinking of cat skills.
Yeah.
That's exactly what I'm thinking about.
All right.
Sorry.
But from the 30s to the 50s, the nightclub circuit was owned and operated by the mafia.
That's pretty cool.
Yeah.
Mafia is not that bad of a thing.
Take away the- The murders?
Yeah.
The drugs.
Just them selling drugs.
I think they're-
Oh, yeah.
The murders you're fine with.
Yeah.
The murders, they're killing each other.
It's a good-
I think it's a good
it's a good joke work today still worked in the 80s still relevant now all right uh nightclubs
and resorts became the breeding ground for a new type of stand-up comedian specifically lenny bruce
um acts such as alan king danny thomas martin and lew Lewis, Don Rickles, and Joan Rivers flourished in these venues.
It's amazing.
They were doing it way back then.
Yeah.
So the 30s and the 50s.
Yeah.
I mean, look how many there's.
Yeah.
What is their stand-ups?
I mean, there's like six.
You know, there's just nobody.
And those were, I mean, there's got to be obviously more than that.
These are the famous ones.
I'm sure there was like, you know mean cosby used to go like at a comedy cellar in new york cosby would go and uh perform at the
i want to say it's ha or narwhal or something whichever is next to uh the comedy cellar and
it's they do music down there now and i know cosby used to go down there carlin used to go down there
and uh they would they because they didn't have the comedy cellar.
They didn't have clubs.
So they would do all that kind of stuff.
But that was going on then.
I mean, just bounce around doing comedy.
Then the 60s rolled around.
Woody Allen,
Chili Berman,
Phyllis Diller were big.
Some black American comedians,
Bill Cosby, you just mentioned.
Flip Wilson,
Dick Gregory became stars
while Red Fox tested the boundaries
of uncensored racial humor.
Bud Friedman opened the Improv in New York City
in 1963, Improv Comedy Club.
And this is pretty crazy.
Bob Newhart's debut album,
The Button Down Mind of Bob Newhart,
reached number one in the Billboard album charts in 1960
and remained at the top for 14 weeks.
It won Album of the Year,
the 1961 Grammy Awards,
where New Heart was named Best New Artist.
It was the first comedy album
to win Album of the Year
and the only time a comedian
had won Best New Artist.
That's unbelievable.
I mean, you know,
I mean, back then,
it was such a big deal with albums.
But yeah,
to come out and be a comedian and to do that is nuts.
And nowadays, I mean, it's impossible.
Yeah.
I mean, he beat every musician.
It didn't have its own category at the time, comedy?
You know, it may have, but...
And the way this is written, it acts like it's happened since then,
but I couldn't find anybody except Bob Newhart that got album of the year.
And he's competing against people like Ray Charles.
It's pretty crazy.
Comedy doesn't really get its own thing.
Comedy is the only thing
in awards that
it's not a part
of something.
Should they be nominated for an Oscar?
Should specials be? Could they be?
It would be great.
I think all that stuff would be,
but we just don't get to do it.
But specials are shot beautifully now,
and they're done.
They just don't...
Comics don't get it.
Not saying we would...
It feels weird,
because we could think that we don't want it either,
because a comic is not about...
But you do want it. Every comic does want it. They're going to say... But the comic is not about but you know you do want it every comic does want
it they're going to say but the idea is like they don't like seinfeld when he won that one
hbo gave him award he was like no one wants this award it's like we want to be in the back of the
room make fun of but he obviously wants you do want that you want the accolades of yeah being
that good it's also easy to say that when you're already Seinfeld.
Yeah, I mean, that's when you get to that level and you're like,
I don't need any of this stuff.
Like, this doesn't do me any favors.
He only takes it if he feels like he owes it to them to go take it.
You know?
Yeah.
Yeah.
That's unreal, though.
Yeah.
I'm a big, you know, we talked about the New Art Show last week.
Yeah, that's, oh, what was it?
Oh, my mom wanted me to say something about last week.
The Who Shot JR.
Yeah.
Not the, the episode that JR got shot, the one before that,
was March, like, 21st, like, 1980.
Okay.
And my parents were, everybody came over to my house and
we're all going to watch it i was one i guess about to be one march 25th was my birth okay
it's my birthday so i was gonna be one my family came down we're gonna celebrate my first birthday
you know and i had a seizure seizure and uh yeah i forget what it's a seizure that babies have or something and then uh so we
had to go to the hospital like so my parents just had to go to the hospital my mom didn't get to see
it and they didn't have like you know they didn't have vcr to record they didn't have any of that
stuff so she just never shot she didn't see the episode where he got shot did they know it was
coming the seizure seizure no the like what did they know that he coming? The seizure? The seizure? No. Did they know that something terrible was going to happen to him
for them to all be gathered around?
Well, my birthday was.
Oh, that's why they were there.
Yeah.
I mean, we were going to be celebrating my birthday.
And it's a big show.
Yeah.
So was it like they were watching because they knew something was.
Yeah.
They were just watching.
I mean, yeah, maybe they did.
Maybe they didn't.
But I think it was just a big show.
And my birthday was we're celebrating my first birthday. I'll come down. They were just watching. I mean, yeah, maybe they did, maybe they didn't. But I think it was just a big show. And my birthday was...
We're celebrating my first birthday.
I'll come down.
We'll watch Dallas.
You know, it was a thing.
Yeah.
It was like a...
You know.
Okay.
And then I had a seizure and they went to the hospital.
So my mom never saw it.
She's still mad about it?
Apparently.
Still brings it up.
Yeah.
She brought it up.
Did you talk about the seizure?
And I go, no, I'm trying to move on past that.
That's interesting.
I had one when I was one and five.
Yeah.
During, I can't think of it.
During Bob Newhart.
During the MASH finale?
Yeah, the MASH finale.
It's only finales.
And one time Seinfeld.
Yeah.
All right.
Then the 70s, Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Jerry Seinfeld,
Jay Leno, Lily Tomlin, Steve Martin were some of the-
Starts rocking.
Yeah, some of the comics who got their start or became big stars of the 70s.
The Comedy Store opened in LA in 1972.
Hollywood Improv opened in 1974.
There's a lot of good documentary stuff about the 70s.
Yeah, there's some great documentaries, great books.
There's a great book about that the boom in comedy
you know yeah i've talked to a lot of guys that started in that kind of era a lot of strike my dad
they had the big strike where they weren't getting paid we had a strike in new york
uh when i moved or almost almost a strike where they wanted the comics to get paid, uh, with Ted,
Ted Oxandro,
uh,
put it together.
I just moved to New York as like 2004 or five.
I was handing out flyers at Boston comedy club and they would have meetings and they wanted the pay to go up.
So to do spots in New York city,
you would,
uh,
am I jumping ahead?
Should I be telling this later?
No,
it's fine.
So, uh, to do, to to make money in New York City, how they all make money,
is you do spots.
And so when you do shows in New York City, it's not like on the road.
So if you're living in Kansas City at the Kansas City Improv,
there you go watch a headliner, an opener, and then an emcee.
But in New York city or in LA,
you see people do spots.
And so New York city was where I was.
And how they do it is you're doing like six comics around the show.
So you go to a show and you're going to see six comics and the,
I forget,
I don't know what they were getting paid then.
I wasn't getting paid cause I was handing out flyers.
I was a new comic,
but they wanted the pay to go up.
And so they got it up whatever it
was i don't know whatever it was but to i think i don't some of it's up even more now since i've
left but they got it up during the week it's 25 a spot so monday to sunday to thursday maybe
sunday to thursday is 25 a spot and that's why you'd go do four or five spots.
So you can make a couple hundred bucks that night.
Uh,
and then if you hosted,
you got $75 a spot Sunday to Thursday because that person couldn't run around
and do more shows to get money.
And then the weekend was one,
uh,
was $75 a spot.
It's not hosting. So then you could go and make 75 bucks a spot. It's not hosting.
So then you could go and make $75 a spot
and then host would get $125, I believe,
to stay on the show.
And then the host would just typically,
if you did three shows a night,
he would just stay there that whole night.
And so it'd be a matter of,
do you want to host and stay
or do you want to go run around?
And that's how New York comics make all their their money that's how you eventually get in and i
mean you would make money i mean you can make i don't know a thousand dollars a week maybe really
well i mean what 25 a spot if you're doing i mean i mean i would go out in the real peak of it
i'm doing two shows every night i mean i did nine years i did a show every night
every night for nine years.
And then, but at those times I'm not getting paid.
And then when I started getting paid, I mean, I'm easily doing two a night.
I would do, you know, you would just be like, where are you at?
Like, I'm at stand in New York and I'm going to run down to the stand
or I'm going to run down to the, or run over to comic strip.
You try to stay uptown too.
Like, so you try to stay, if you, if you, if you could do stand up,
New York was like 80 something, 90th, 89th in Amsterdam,
or it was upper West side.
And the comic strip was upper East side.
So you would try to, if you could, you just like, well,
I'm going to stay up there.
And if I could run back between the two. And so you would just stay, if you could, you just like, well, I'm going to stay up there. And if I could run back between the two.
And so you would just stay in New York.
And then sometimes it was the best nights were when it was nice and it was
like nice outside and you had a break,
you could just walk over.
So like you would just,
you know,
I have an hour and you're like,
I'm going to just walk over and you have a comic with you.
And you're just like,
oh,
let's walk. And you walk over, you go into the comic walk over. And you have a comic with you, and you're just like, oh, let's walk.
And you walk over.
You go into the comic strip.
You do the show.
And then you've got to go back.
But, I mean, yeah, so you make, do two a night, $25, $50.
What is that?
Four days is $200.
And then on the weekend, if you do five shows, it's $75,
whatever that would be.
You know, I mean, is is that that's probably about a thousand
right something like that let's get on up there so that's how you make uh yeah that's how the
comics in new york would would make your money they run around and do this it's a lot it's a
the problem is it's a it's a lot of work you're working for that money i mean you're doing shows the most shows i ever did was seven in one night and so all these sets two are 15 minutes long uh so the most i ever did was seven
and it was that seven i just remember it was too much by the time you got to the last one you're
you don't even you don't know if you've said the same joke. You're like, have I already said this joke?
Yeah.
Because you're doing the same set.
So like, you know, I mean, I think most people listening to this podcast will understand,
no comedy, but you're doing the same set majority of the times.
And that's how you fix the set and make it become really good.
And you got to do it over and over and over and over again.
And so you would be doing that in New York.
And I remember, I mean, you just would do, but mostly five. Like if I go back now, like if I'm doing a tonight show and I go back, I like
to run like, I don't have to do as much as I used to, but I'll do, I'll still do probably three one
night to the next night. And then I'll do this night show the next day. And so that's what I'll
end up doing. And I'll just do, and what I want to do, and I do it usually, the first couple sets, I'll do full sets, 15 minutes, and I'll just open with
my Tonight Show set. That's five minutes. So I open with it and I'll do 10 minutes. And then,
but the last day I like to do just five. I want to do just, I don't want to do 15. I want to do my
five. I want to pop in and be able to do it so I can truly time it
and know what the set is at, what time it is at.
And that's how I do.
That's what I do tonight shows.
I used to always go do it in a bad room too.
I would go to a room that's tough.
It's really not a comedy club.
I might find a little bar and then go do somewhere where the audience
is not going to be great.
Because I knew if I could do the set during that, I could do it.
I wouldn't be nervous at this night show.
Because in my head, I'm like, well, I did this where no one laughed and everybody hated me.
So I'll go, now I'm fine.
It's just putting that set through the mud.
So this is a set.
You obviously already have confidence in the jokes. So you're not going to lose confidence if it's a bad that set through the mud, you know? Right. So this is a set. You obviously already have confidence in the jokes,
so you're not going to lose confidence if it's a bad room.
Yeah, yeah.
You're like, all right.
But really the timing is what I'm looking at.
I'm looking at, you know,
I'm looking at the timing of doing this without big laughs.
Yeah.
I'm not worried about like, you're not going to bomb.
No one's going to boo me or anything.
But if they don't laugh how I think they're going to laugh, one's gonna boo me or anything yeah i'm but if they don't
laugh how i think they're gonna laugh that's the only really you know so i gotta get i gotta get
my time like if i can do it where the audience is not laughing uh then i know that timing and
i've said it i can get through these jokes without i'm not relying on that time it's not gonna mess
me up i've already said it without them laughing. Because if you get in front of a Tonight Show crowd,
some of them can be over-crowd.
They can be over-excited where they clap too much
and they're applauding.
You have to stop.
I mean, sometimes in a Tonight Show,
you have to kind of talk to stay on top of them.
Like, if I feel like they're about to clap
and they're going to kind of stop your momentum
and the joke is still, like, I'm in the middle.
It's not like that's the end of that joke. I'm in the middle of that joke. And you got to kind of stop your momentum. And the joke is still like, I'm in the middle. It's not like that's the end of that joke.
I'm in the middle of that joke.
And you got to kind of be like,
and then I went,
I went to the store.
So I went,
I went to the store the other day.
You got to kind of,
you got to do that.
And that's how you kind of keep them at bay.
Like,
that's how you kind of be like,
no,
no,
no,
no,
no,
I'm not done without saying,
no,
I'm not done.
And that happens a lot.
And you just got to kind of stay on top of them.
You're controlling them. Yeah. You're just controlling the response because you're like i can't really i we can't
get out of it if we all clap and we get out of this it's going to feel weird for me to get back
into it but i have to get back into it so you try to kind of you're trying to like keep everything
the rhythm of it's really great because i, I mean, they like the joke.
And the TV crowd is going to be,
they're a little more hurrah than a normal crowd.
But, I mean, I always say,
when you do a Tonight Show set,
it's not like you go have the greatest,
you feel like the reaction is the greatest
you've ever been a part of.
I never think it is.
I think you can do,
you end up getting bigger laughs
at a comedy club the night before
because the comedy club is built for that.
And when you do a Tonight Show,
I mean,
Tonight Show is actually a really good setup
for late night shows
that you walk out and you stand.
There's a little four leaf clover,
right where the thing is.
They ask you if you want to hold the mic, whatever you want to do.
Fallon does a great, great job of telling them what's going to happen.
He does an awesome, I mean, you know, I've seen a lot of-
Telling the comic?
No, the audience.
Oh, the audience.
So, you know, all I've ever done is Conan.
I did Late Night with Conan.an when he was at tbs i did late night with jimmy fallon and then fallon he's at tonight show
so those were all in different studios and conan was uh late night with conan was a good setup
when he went to tbs not a good setup it was're very far. The audience is set up where you walk out,
and there's some people kind of right in front of you.
And then think of like a kidney bean.
That's what the seats kind of are shaped like that.
It kind of goes that way.
So the person, someone's really far away from you.
Like a lot of people are really far away from you.
So the audience is not kind of on you.
So you just got to get, that's kind of a weird setup. And it can throw people off where far away from you. The audience is not on you. That's
a weird setup. It can throw people off
where you're like, what is this?
You've got to face the camera, right? You can't turn
and kind of... You can look at the crowd.
You try not to look at the camera too much.
I think people have decided
what do you want to do?
Do you want to talk to... Here's the
problem. If you're watching
on YouTube,
what I always think about when I'm performing and what I've noticed, the audience is going to
be, they're a little bit above. So they're above the camera. So when you're talking, if I'm looking
like this into the camera and I'm like, Hey, Hey, and I'm talking to the jokes. And I know if you're
listening to this, you might, this might not make sense,
but I'll try to explain it,
but you're talking,
I'm looking right at the camera.
My eyeline is the camera is side to side.
I like,
you see this.
If I look at the crowd,
now you're seeing the whites of my eyes.
And so I've have done it.
And,
but then you realize,
Oh,
that doesn't look good.
Like,
it's just like,
and if you saw a comic being like,
so what's going on,
you know,
the person at home is getting a much different experience than the people
there.
So I've learned to not really try to do that.
I don't look past too high up.
You just trying to kind of stay level.
So in the audience thinks you're looking at them and then,
you know,
and then they don't.
So it's an interesting game.
But so, yeah, the Tonight Show does very – so what Fallon does, it's so good.
And the guy that books Conan, JP, is unbelievable.
He's awesome.
The two best bookers, and really the ones that I've dealt with,
so there's JP, then Michael Cox, who books the Tonight Show,
and he's the real deal.
I've dealt with a lot of bookers.
Tonight Show, they went through a lot of bookers at one point
when they were just trying to find bookers.
The guys at The Stand, Comedy Club The Stand, they're great.
They booked it at one point.
And it was like, I don't think they realized they owned The Stand
at a comedy club in New York.
And they're like, you can't.
You're like, how is this going to work out?
It's a huge conflict of interest.
And then they eventually found out.
But I was a lot of, when a new booker came on, I was a lot of their first.
They would always book me.
Not to say anything, but I had a good relationship with Fallon.
I'm clean.
I'm not trying to push any envelope.
I'm not trying to get on there and
say something crazy I'm kind of minding my own business so I was a lot of like when this night
show needed someone it was like Fallon likes you let's have you on and then they get to you know
they're doing it but the guy that books tonight so now is amazing and he's really good because
they you got to send them your set they got to look at the set i mean it's much different when i first started it was you got to have this stuff on tape uh you have to
my first conan i mean i feel like i'm just keeping rambling anyway so the well let me say the
tonight show so what fallon does is he goes and before he brings you out in front of the crowd
like you talked to him backstage it's very just it's a wonderful everybody that works there is wonderful every time i go back i see it uh the roots are amazing
they always come and like say something very nice and uh but before fallon brings you out he goes
and stands where you're going to stand and he talks to the crowd that's there because you need
that crowd to be great because that's your reaction and uh so he's like we got a great stand
up comedian he's gonna be coming out he's so funny it's great you're gonna love it he's gonna
stand right here and you're gonna enjoy it and so that's so important because now they know where
you're gonna come they know where to look they know like he's setting you up very nicely and
then he brings you out and uh and you always wave at the band. I always heard that was like kind of a thing with some of these late night shows.
Some people come out, not comics, but could be anybody, the celebrities, and they don't acknowledge the band.
And it's not, it looks bad.
Like, you know, people, it's just kind of in, you know, so you're like, oh, do you do it?
Do you not acknowledge them?
Do you acknowledge them?
And I always heard you got to acknowledge them because you look crazy.
I've never thought about that.
Me either.
I'm going to notice it every time now.
Yeah, I think everyone will.
Do they wave at the band or do they not?
You've got to give a fair that some people could be nervous
and they're not thinking, you know, they're going to walk out and be like,
oh, yeah, it was a blur, dude.
I didn't even notice the audience.
But, you know.
How nervous were you when you first did it?
When I first did it, the first one I did, Conan.
So how I got Conan, the first one was I was in New York,
Eastville Comedy Club, and they were doing auditions.
And they would come and just watch comics.
They'd do a showcase.
We're going to watch comics.
And so I go,
my managers,
uh,
went and got them,
my old managers,
and they went and got them.
And,
uh,
they,
I got the audition.
I did it.
The set went good and I was on the next week.
Uh,
so it was very quick.
And this was with late night with Conan O'Brien right before he left.
And then the second time I did it, he was about to leave and go take over The Tonight Show.
And it was like, I want to say it's like February.
I did it in September.
And then they were doing other auditions at Eastville.
And I wanted to do it in February.
And I told my managers, my older managers, I was like, hey, I want to do it again.
And they were like, it's too soon.
You can't do it.
And I was like, I i want to do it again and they were like it's too soon you can't do it and i was like i think i can do it and they're like no they're never gonna there's no reason
to even go try and i knew mulaney who i started with john mulaney was kind of started the same
time but i remember john mulaney it was an unbelievable company but he just did it he just
did them like kind of close as well john mulaney did them twice i was like i mean they're doing that like i think i could do it twice and they were like no it's crazy so i went and called i went and i knew
obviously the booker of the club and i told them hey i want to do it again they were like yeah they
would love to see you like i'm a clean comedian like they're gonna you know i can at least have
a shot and i just did it uh so i went and did it and i did not tell those managers i was
like i'm not gonna tell them i wanted to just get on conan and them see me on conan and so uh i
didn't tell them and then they call me because uh it's the steinbergs these managers they're in
their eye level they're they made it that i think i would almost i mean i would tell them this so i might have told them the story they're they were the they were known
they were new york managers they're two brothers and they're all they're actually awesome the uh
grass i'll talk to evan like he's in arizona zone now but uh they're so they they i they they get
the conan people call my managers that day and say,
hey, Nate's got to be there at the club, whatever.
And so then they call me and they go,
so you got to be at the club for the Conan audition?
So you're doing it?
And I was like, yeah, y'all told me I couldn't do it,
and I just asked the club and they're letting me do it.
And then so I went down to Conan and I did it, and it was – the was, the set went great and I did it the next week and I did it again.
And, uh, that one I did with, uh, were they mad?
No, no, they were, they, they were happy.
They don't care.
Like, you know, it's like, they're like, ah, whatever you did it good for you.
But you were hoping they just turned on the TV that night and saw you back on it again.
Oh yeah.
That was, that was what I was going for. And if I,
if I would have known,
I didn't,
I didn't know that they would have called and said,
here,
tell Nate what time we're coming.
But,
uh,
or I would have stopped that.
I would have been like,
don't tell them.
I was really trying to,
and then I just,
but I didn't know that they called your manager.
I didn't think about it because I,
you know, I was new to all this kind of.
But yeah, I was hoping that I could just show them.
I would have loved it just to see me on.
It would have been very funny.
But when I did those, I was nervous.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, she's been a guest twice when I've been on Conan and and another one on Tonight Show. Never
talked to her. Really?
Great. Did I tell this
story on? One story I saw
backstage at Tonight Show. Val Kilmer
was on the Tonight
Show.
He's just walking around. Dude, he's
in his own world, man. He's great.
You don't always talk to all
the guests. I'm trying to think
who may have ever really you know vince vaughn i talked to once which i was doing the nashville
fest he was used to be a part of that and uh he was cool aaron paul uh when i was on here he was
just like hey what's up and that was about it uh trying to think anybody i don't none of them i
really you kind of try to stay out of the way you kind of not try to like you know i've always trying to think anybody, I don't, none of them are really,
you kind of try to stay out of the way. You kind of not try to like, you know,
I've not always talked to Fallon a lot, but you just kind of, you know,
I don't really, Patton Oswalt was on the show.
Obviously I knew Patton and so it was kind of, but yeah,
most you don't, it's just, I don't really mess with anything.
And so Val Coomer is on the show and
he just keeps like walking he just kind of walks around into every room and uh and then so it's
like i mean i think i talked to him for a second but not much and uh he and julia's office is there
he just walks into her i just see him walk into uh her green room and she's sitting there and she's like,
Hey Val.
And he's like,
I'm getting married in two months.
You're going to come.
And then walks off.
And that's it.
She had no idea that he's getting married.
And like,
he just was like,
you're invited to the wedding.
And then leaves no more,
no more information,
no more anything.
And just,
that was,
I think the only time they talked was that
and he was because she left right after and you know and he but he was just like a kind of guy
like like that yeah and then he and then he ended up like following me and like i think listened to
me and tweeted you tweeted at me a few times uh it was it was very nice and i didn't really even
talk to him that much at the time show but besides that i just remember him inviting her to his wedding and she was like okay like and then he
just kind of kept going and just kind of keep walking down you know that's great all right
let's get in some of these questions um so i'm not gonna these are questions from from fans and
listeners i'm i don't have their names because a lot of them are asking the same question.
But first one was, who's the first comedian you remember seeing perform live?
I mean, on TV, I want to say it was Sinbad.
You know, I think maybe Seinfeld at the end of a Seinfeld episode when it was on.
I think Sinbad even before then.
I remember Jim Brewer was the first live one.
Did they say live?
Yeah.
Jim Brewer was the first live one.
It was at Zaney's in Nashville.
I was in high school.
I have on my, what I was going to do in 10 years,
when you write your senior year,
where are you going to be in 10 years?
And I said, I'm going to be playing in the NBA. I was like always saying i was gonna still make the nba i love basketball and i technically
did because i played for the nashville baptist association uh church ball and and then it was
rw performing at zany's i'll be at zany's performing and i kind of put that i think as a
joke like it was i wasn't had no concept of really being like, I'm going to start doing comedy.
But I remember I went and watched Jim Brewer.
And I just remember how good he did.
I mean, he walked off stage.
I gave him a high five.
I mean, I was like, this guy's amazing, dude.
It was unbelievable how hard we laughed.
And I remember seeing the openers.
I thought everybody was just probably rich on that show.
Yeah.
And then you start emceeing and you're like,
Oh,
that guy was poor as like I was a senior in high school and I've made more
money than he did.
I mean,
he was making nothing like $10 maybe or something stupid.
So yeah,
Jim brew was the first one and I got to work with him.
I don't,
you know,
I've only,
I've been around him a few times
but we never talked a ton
but I'm still a gigantic
Jim Brewer fan
and Jim Brewer is very
very funny
very
unbelievable comedian
a little underrated
in the fact that
he doesn't get the clout
that I think he deserves
he's up there
with all the tops
and he's an awesome
awesome comic
I remember going to Zany's when I was in college so this is early 90s and i don't remember his name but
he's the guy from the movie major league that's bob uker's sidekick the color color commentator
that never comments you guys see major league yeah yeah i can't put a face to that yeah uh that's
his chick he never says anything harley and bob
but bob he's bob buker he's a stand-up comic he was very funny and we got to meet he stood by the
door after the show selling merch yeah and i was blown away that i got to meet this guy yeah i
thought it was the greatest thing ever yeah what was yours i saw brian regan yeah in college it's
the first live show i ever saw. At Notre Dame?
Yeah.
I saw Brian Regan open for Jerry Seinfeld once.
Really?
At TPAC?
At TPAC, yeah.
Yeah, I was there.
Was it 2003?
Yeah.
It's a decent show.
Yeah.
I didn't know who Brian Regan was.
I didn't know who Brian Regan was either.
And I flew back.
That's when I started comedy.
I moved to Chicago.
And then we came back.
Was it September 11th or around 12th? Because I remember it was 2002.
It was early 2000s.
It was 2002 because I flew back on September 11th, 2002.
So it was a year after.
I remember flying back one year on the one-year anniversary of 9-11.
Oh, wow.
And back to Nashville.
And we moved to Chicago, me and Michael Clay,
who I'm wearing his daughter's softball hat this week, Moxie.
She's in a real legit travel softball.
It's like real deal.
They're good.
All that travel kid stuff, I think it gets crazy.
It gets super serious.
So me and Michaelael moved in chicago
and uh i came back to see sign phone and it was brian reagan open i believe brian reagan
it's funny i remember the opener being super funny but you have no concept of what's happening
like yeah now since i'm in this world i understand understand it so much. And like,
you're like,
how do these people not know?
Like there's people that come to shows and they don't know that there's an
opener.
Yeah.
Still,
still.
And,
but like,
I think I could have been that person.
I mean,
if you're not going to a live show,
I think standup comedy is a lot more mainstream now than it was then.
I mean, it was then I mean
I think
stand-up comedy
is becoming
very mainstream
and
it's
people are listening
to it
like a little more
consuming it
like music
but
but then
yeah I didn't
think about it
and
a lot of stuff
was I just never
thought stuff through
and that's
I was saying
I had friends
I have friends now
I'll say who are your favorite comics?
And they'll name some people.
And I think those comics are terrible.
You don't know what you're...
But I was the same way before.
Name the comics.
I got into stand-up.
Me.
Yeah, somewhere in the room.
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
But you mentioned how cool it was
that you got to meet that comic.
Yeah.
That was the thing that blew me away when I started doing stand-up
is how accessible all of the best comics in the world are.
I was like four months into comedy, and I met Ralphie May.
Yeah.
I was like, that's unbelievable.
Yeah, it's unbelievable.
It's like picking up a guitar, and then you meet Eric Clapton in a couple months. It's insane. Yeah, it's unbelievable. It's like picking up a guitar and then you meet Eric Clapton in a couple months.
It's insane.
Yeah.
Comparing Ralphie Miller to Eric Clapton is a little...
I'm just...
Rest in peace, Ralphie.
Ralphie was a wonderful guy.
This kind of...
Okay, go ahead.
No, no, I was just saying that.
I was going to say, so that kind of takes away the next question, which comedians have
influenced your career?
Influenced my career.
It's some weird ones that are not going to be probably normal.
But the mine, one of, I mean, the beginning, Big Jay Oakerson and Kurt Metzger, two very dirty comics, but two very close friends of mine.
And we just moved to New York.
That's the great thing about New York is when you go move in, you just kind of hang out with guys
that it's not like you're hanging out with...
Me and you are probably the closest act
that our acts are clean and whatever.
I mean, probably all of us
are kind of the closest where we're like,
you would think,
oh yeah, I could see those comics hanging out.
Usually the acts are pretty different.
And I think it's really New York.
The acts were very different.
And so you're hanging out with guys that are filthy.
And like, because it's like, those are just your friends.
And so, I mean, Big J, Kurt Metzger, they were huge influences on me
because they were just right above me.
And just how funny they were that
was the first time i moved and i saw these guys no one knew who these guys were and we're all
basically kind of still starting and i was blown i was like god dude these guys are so funny like
it was unbelievable just being like you've been doing comedy four years and you're just like dude
like it's nuts and you're
seeing these guys and that's being at
Boston Comedy Club Dustin Chafin the guy
I served with he would
run it and like it was and he's a comic
too but we would all be there
and just all be like I wouldn't take
that time away at all
like with being at Boston Comedy Club
it was amazing to get to watch
all these people.
Bill Burr, Patrice Sona.
Burr is probably the biggest as far as not saying act-wise.
I don't think people affect you as far as the way you do your act.
They affect you in the way that you – how you get excited and how you kind of go across what I need to do to get –
How you approach comedy. how you approach comedy,
how you approach comedy.
And,
uh,
so like seeing like,
I mean,
David tell,
you know,
it was a big deal watching how funny he was,
but like Burr was a big deal.
Cause Burr,
I saw Burr,
you know,
I think I've talked about this before,
but like Burr's paths to me was,
I watched him.
I remember the Philly rant before it happened.
I remember him telling us about it,
like right when it kind of blew up on YouTube.
And he's like,
it was,
they tell us about the show.
I remember watching Burr's HBO one night stand.
I mean,
I knew Burr,
Burr doing his first Letterman when he,
I was almost handing him a flyer.
Cause I did crap.
HBO crashing was what I,
how I started Pete Holmes.
And so,
and then he almost handed him a flyer.
And he's doing Letterman for the first time.
And I mean, I remember that.
And then so I got to watch him.
I remember going to watch him.
Caroline's headline is 30 people there.
Then Caroline's being mad if you asked if you could go watch him.
Because you know how busy we are this weekend.
Bill Burr is here.
And how that is. I mean, like yeah seeing burr to town hall that's great me and soda went to
town hall to watch burr when he first did town hall and you know as it was like kind of like
kind of knowing him at that point i think he would always be like yeah nate you know you would know
me and i'd always still introduce myself to him.
He's the biggest to me just because I've watched all his success and just seeing it was like, God, there's a path.
There's a way to do it.
That guy's doing it.
That guy is unbelievable.
Dude doing town hall with me and Soder and sitting in the fifth row
and watching him at town hall to then i performed
at town hall last year was is pretty wild like it was i mean it was i think 10 years to the almost
weekend was i was here watching burr then i was doing two shows wow and it was i mean so then i
remember someone yelled at him and i remember all this stuff and I remember how big that place was and then you know and then you're there and you're like you know so Burr was uh uh is a huge huge influence for me
I mean Gaffigan too uh Seinfeld Seinfeld Seinfeld's the big I mean Seinfeld's the biggest
Seinfeld I moved from Chicago to New York because I watched Comedian I'm obsessed with Seinfeld
Seinfeld's the biggest deal to me.
I watched, I had his,
the last time I'm going to tell you,
I had it memorized.
So everything about that guy,
I don't do my comedy as much like him.
I mean, some is observational,
but I'm, the way I tell stories,
I talk a little looser than him.
He's very more, you know,
he could write his out word for word, kind of.
But everything that guy's done, Seinfeld's obviously number one.
But all that stuff changes.
When you move to New York, it gets, once you're in it,
like whatever your heroes are, I mean, they're just so far up there that you're not going to, like, I mean, Seinfeld,
I'm not meeting Seinfeld.
I'm not hanging out with him.
But like Burr, I was getting to kind of get to know.
Not like we were best friends, but I could go talk to him.
I could ask that guy a question.
And so getting to sit and watch from a distance him, Burr was the biggest.
But Seinfeld, still never met him.
And I mean, that's it. that's it he's he's the last
he's the last the last of your your guys that you last ones that i want to meet i mean almost
anybody i mean i would love to meet like tiger and michael jordan yeah but uh among comedians
as yeah comedians he's it yeah there's no one else uh
comedians he's it yeah there's no one else uh rock you know do you ever meet him never met cosby so i mean but that's i've kind of that's gone now i can go visit him you know where he's
at actually might be pretty easy to me i just need seinfeld to go to jail and then i'll get him
uh that's funny yeah Yeah, he's...
Yeah, no one... I'm trying to think anybody else.
Yeah.
Chappelle, I've been around Chappelle.
Chappelle would come into the Boston Comedy Club
all the time when we first started.
Have I told these Chappelle stories?
No, I haven't heard.
So Chappelle would always come in,
and when we'd be handing out these flyers...
Chappelle's show is on the air when this is all going. This is when he's doing the Chappelle show. It's the peak of the Chappelle would always come in and when we'd be handing out these flyers, Chappelle's show is on the air when this is all going like this,
this is when he's doing the Chappelle show.
It's the peak of the Chappelle show.
It's huge.
It's enormous.
I mean,
when I was doing all these is not much.
And then he left and was just gone.
So I saw him up to then he left and then was gone.
And so Chappelle would always come in.
We,
you know,
we'd had Boston comedy club.
So the idea of it was the comedy club would just be open,
and it would run from, I don't know, 8 p.m. to 2 a.m.,
and everybody can pop in and go on.
Really, you would have some guys booked,
so the actual show would be like 8 to 10,
and then it would just run on,
and anybody can go and just jump on whenever they want.
Dustin really, like, it was really run like a very great place.
And so people would come down and go up.
And so you would see them come on whenever they want.
So you see Burr, Patrice, you see all these guys.
And then Chappelle would always kind of stop by after he taped the show.
He loved Boston Comedy Club.
I think he started there.
You know, Brennan worked the door there.
tape the show. He loved Boston comedy club. I think he started there.
Neil Brennan worked the door there. And so they, they,
there was a big deal, you know, that club.
So Chappelle would always come down. I remember,
I remember having makeup on like behind his ear, like he would,
cause he'd come straight from there just to do standup. And I mean, he'd be in front of six people. I mean, no one's, sometimes he'd be on, no one's in there.
And then we would walk outside and be like, hey, Chappelle's on stage.
And you can go watch for free, not even charge tickets.
And I mean, it would then be a hundred.
We could get it to a hundred people within 15 minutes by just saying Chappelle's on stage.
And so we'd go out there and we would say it.
I remember telling someone, I told them Chappelle's on stage.
Dave Chappelle's on stage if you guys want to watch.
And they were like, we don't believe you.
And I was like, well, I'm at a comedy club.
It's not insane for me to say Dave Chappelle's on stage.
And I was like, there's three stairs that led up to it.
And then a glass door.
And I was like, go look.
If he's not on those, if he's not on stage, then turn around.
I'm not going to make you stay.
They go, no, we don't believe you.
I was like, just look.
If he's not there, then don't go.
What do you think is going to happen?
Then they just left.
They never did it.
I think about those people a lot.
I hope they could ever hear it.
They missed the great issue.
They could have saw Dave Chappelle for free
and they just did it.
I remember him coming up and being on the phone once.
He would always park up front.
You couldn't park in front of the club, but he could.
And then Patrice O'Neill also would park,
and I would sit in Patrice's car.
And so if a cop came,
I would just drive it around
until he got off stage.
But Chappelle parks
and as he walks in,
he's like on the phone
with like a customer service.
And because I just hear him,
he just goes,
David Chappelle.
And like, you know,
it was like such a weird thing to hear.
Like, you know,
he's like talking to,
you know, I don't know,
like his dentist or something like, or whatever.
No one does that with their dentist office,
but whoever he's talking to, his insurance company.
And it was just such a, it always like stuck with me
because it was like a weird, you know,
he's the most famous person on earth at that point.
And just being like David Chappelle.
In fact, he said Davidid it's let's see
well he's giving his name to something maybe he's buying a plane ticket or something yeah
yeah uh so it was like such a crazy thing but then i remember yeah like him just being on stage
and him going on really late he hosted a show one night uh where he just was like oh there's
other comics on it i want to go the coolest
moment i saw at the comics so he would do the comedy seller and he would go on very
very late and to do long long sets for this was he was kind of starting to talk for three or four
hours and uh it would just bump all the other comics and i mean it was cool but then some
comics it would start to get annoying i wasn't to the
point of he wasn't bumping me because i was such a new comic uh but it was the guys that were
working were like every night dude you're doing four hours like we all need to get on stage and
the comics would get paid but they just wouldn't perform and so it was as a mix of like cool and but then becoming not cool whatever and so and he
was not being a jerk about it it's like that's the deal man he got that famous he gets to do that
that's the best that's what you're that's what you're trying to do right i want to walk in and
they go you get to go up next that's my goal i mean i got bumped by everybody i mean I got bumped by everybody. I mean, I got bumped. Louis C.K. bumped me one night.
I was running my Tonight Show set, actually.
This was when Louis C.K. hosted the SNL.
And I was running my Tonight Show set,
and then Louis had to come in to run his SNL monologue.
So Louis went on first, and then I went on after.
And so he bumped my Tonight Show. My Tonight show is not as big as hosting snl uh i remember seinfeld coming in i remember seinfeld uh bumping gaffigan
because your biggest fear when you'd be like some nights you'd be running the show
uh at boston and i was like what do i do when you know, what if Chris Rock and Chappelle walk in together? Yeah.
Who do I say is going up?
Who do you go?
All right, Rock, you're first.
Chappelle, you're at.
Like, I was terrified of like who.
That ever happened?
Do you ever get that dilemma?
No, but I learned if it's never to that level, you would get it with you get it with like the bill burr or patrice o'neill
walking together or something like that kind of level but i learned that you just let them kind
of decide so who wants to go first and you just throw it to them and they could be like i don't
know you go because it's you don't want to be ranking but i thought you had to rank it because
you would get to that level of you could have someone sitting in the back room or the back row and like he doesn't get to go on yet because it's like a guy that has no credits
and you're like well this guy walked in with two tv credits so he he gets to technically go before
you so you would get to do that uh what was i talking about before that oh that was chapelle
thing yeah so when he bumped so the coolest thing i saw was uh chapelle's on stage doing a long set right and he kind of bumps everybody and then
david tell david tell is i think the funniest pound for pound the funniest comedian that's
ever lived i would go pay to watch david tell he's the only comic i would go pay to go watch
right now i would pay uh and i could go watch every show i think he's unbelievable and super
funny and just doing jokes.
Like it's fun jokes, not this big thing.
It's not a whole, it's not weighing you down.
It's not like you got to go watch it.
And it's like, great point.
Like Bob, it's just straight up jokes.
You're going to laugh the entire time.
And so Attell walks downstairs
and Dave Chappelle sees Attell
and Attell's very respected in New York.
He's respected everywhere. But Attell's the guy in New York and Chappelle sees Attell and Attell's very respected in New York. He's respected everywhere.
Attell's the guy in New York.
And Chappelle's on stage and he looks
and sees Dave Attell just kind of in the
back and Chappelle goes,
oh, what's up, Dave? He's like, did you go on yet?
And Attell goes, no.
And Chappelle goes, alright, goodnight everybody.
Dave Attell. And walked off.
Because he was like, I'll bump everybody
but I can't, even though Chappelle's more famous than Attell and walked off. Because he was like, I'll bump everybody, but I can't.
Even though Chappelle's more famous than Attell.
Yeah.
You can't bump Attell.
That's so cool.
And so you don't, like, that's the deal.
That's like the highest sign of respect ever.
Is he just immediately got off stage and just was like, all right.
I saw you get bumped once by, no, he didn't.
That is true.
Wait, what?
Do you know this story?
Comic-Con.
Great.
I come back to Nashville.
This is not that long ago.
Nate's done multiple Tonight Show sets.
Maybe eight years ago.
Has it been that long?
I think so.
But you were still...
I've already done, yeah, I've done Conan, Tonight Show.
You're headlining clubs.
Yeah, yeah, I'm headlining clubs.
You're not a nobody at this point.
I don't think I did.
I haven't done Netflix.
That's it.
Okay.
But yeah, but you're doing great. We go to Spanky's, a bar at this point. I don't think I did. I haven't done Netflix. That's it. Okay. But yeah, but you're doing great.
We go to Spanky's, a bar here in Nashville.
Open mic bar.
Open mic, Tuesday night.
You can smoke it.
You can still smoke cigarettes in it.
Right.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And we sign up on the list.
We wait.
We're like number 20 and 21 or whatever.
Not getting moved up at all.
No one's told me a favor
being like yeah he gets to he gets to go up whenever he wants to go up so we just sit there
everyone we wait uh i mean i should wait but he shouldn't so nate's waiting and um a little bit
before it's time nate's turn the host comes up and says hey uh no no, he didn't. He's just dropped in, and he's going to go up before you,
so we're going to have to bump you.
He got bumped.
I mean, I got bumped.
We got a spike.
He goes by, no, he didn't.
Wow.
What's funny is I was texting with Mark Maron,
who I'm friends with.
I'm not trying to just say I'm doing this stuff.
I've been in comedy for 17 years, so those are my friends.
But it's funny, too, to be like, I'm texting with Maron.'s just and I texted him I said I just got bumped by a guy called no he
didn't and Maren loved it who was white by the way yeah no stop yeah yeah like comic by name no he
didn't yeah I guess that's what the that's what the name means but uh I mean you're talking about
the greatest comedians in the world that's's the difference. Like, you've been doing comedy 17 years.
I've been doing it about 13.
17 and a half.
Not that big a difference in time-wise, but I've spent my entire 13 years in Nashville,
whereas you went Chicago, New York for nine, and then LA.
Yeah.
So that's...
Brian was excited for No, He Didn't.
He was like...
I was.
That's actually...
I've done your length of comedy now
not here
yeah you're exactly right
I got it because I knew who No He Didn't was
star studded evening
he walked over and goes look
I know it's insane
but you don't know really who he is
he's actually a pretty big deal
open mic
open mic
and then uh yeah i think now i get to go up
well if i go that's because spanky's closed but yeah that's really no he didn't not on the circuit
as much as he used to was it no he did it or no he did it well he did it yeah i think he it was a
play on words i think it was noah was i think but he didn't want his mom to come see him.
Now, when you hear that, you're like, so he's 22?
He's 50.
Yeah.
Yeah.
He's 50 years old.
Yeah.
And he doesn't want his elderly mom, because he can be a little raunchy.
Right.
To like see the advertisement that he is performing which it's an open mic that
is unadvertised and not not you know it wasn't like no he didn't was on the brochure the flyer
and they're like who's this nate bargetti guy no he didn't that's what i'm waiting for
it's great i got bumped or one time I remember when I was running a Conan set.
And so the deal was when you needed to run a set for late night,
you could just go to comedy club and go,
Hey,
I just need five minutes.
I got to run.
I'm doing the Letterman tomorrow.
And then every comedy club is like,
yeah,
obviously.
And then they get to go up.
That's the deal.
That's the,
that's the,
that's the thing that you love about getting these late night sets
is you get to go walk around and do that so when i was first doing conan in new york uh i i did that
i was the second time i think and i was like all right i'm gonna go do like seven sets i'm starting
super early at like 5 p.m at some open mic and i go into the open mic i was like i'm doing conan
uh do you think i can go on and the guy's like he's like
yeah you can go on at the end you can just sign it sign up last and i was like i was like but i
know but i'm taping conan o'brien tomorrow like so can i just i'm trying to do a bunch of shows
tonight can i try to go up and the guy's like yeah at the end at 28 we're at eight and then
then i just had to leave and he wouldn't let me go up
and uh because it's like that guy's world it was like i mean i might as well have just been like
i'm doing i'm doing stand-up comedy on the moon and he'd be like all right man whatever just do
that back of the line like it didn't like it didn't register like nothing really meant to him
i always liked
it i liked being told though though i thought it's very funny bill burr had that at hawk
he talked about on his podcast there's a comedy club i think called hawk and time square where
they go and they hand out these fires and they lie they're telling you like jerry seinfeld's
on the show dang cook they just always say dang like bill burr and they and people are like whoa
and then they go in it's like some weird room upstairs and whatever so they would always they say i mean they
honestly say burr is on the show and burr was in like new york this before the pandemic and uh went
up there and was like can i get on and they were like i mean who are you know who are you and he's
like i mean i'm bill burr and the guy i just don't think knew him is like i'm a pretty book tonight and he's like you know like burr and burr sold out the garden
you're using his name as like and he's like all right and then he just didn't i don't think got
up that's crazy like it's crazy how do you not know he's the guy he's the main guy now yeah yeah
let's read some of these other questions all right uh so have you
ever did you ever consider quitting was there ever a time where you were like i don't know we had one
conversation i could even drive you to the spot where it's at it was we're driving by our house
where laura said how long would you do this you know if it wasn't going and i just said i was like well forever uh but that
yeah i never i i never really hit a spot where i thought i had to quit yeah i never you know
there was never a moment uh you know there's definitely frustrating times i mean there's been
i mean plenty of frustrating times like i always say as a comic, you either make it at 20 or 40.
Yeah.
I don't think anybody makes it in the middle.
You get a long road ahead of you, Aaron.
Bates still got some time.
Also, never at 50.
So he has a two-year window.
But I honestly think if you really look at everybody's success, 20 to 40,
that's when people make it.
They either come out of the gate, get grabbed up, you're famous,
or you have to wait until you're 40 and you're Burr, Louie.
You know, these guys that have been around for a long time.
And so, but I never hit that spot right away.
But there's definitely, I mean, it was a long road.
I mean, you know, this Netflix stuff,
you got to think this is my first hour Netflix special.
That just happened two years ago.
The first, and that's the Netflix specials
and the standups, the half hour.
Those are the things that pushed me to the next level
to where I was selling,
being able to start selling out some theaters
and start doing some bigger shows.
But it's been a great, it's been 17 years.
The Tonight Show's all added up.
It's being around.
I was around.
That's what you got to do.
You got to be around.
You got to be popping up.
You always want to, I remember at comedy clubs, you wanted to be the guy.
You want to first, you start headlining.
And, you know, I mean, you got to realize people,
no one has a bunch of people, comics.
When you first start headlining, you can be at $1,500 to realize people don't have so much people comics. When you first start headline, you can be at fifteen hundred dollars, maybe twelve hundred usually for the weekend.
That guy gets from for Thursday to Sunday, twelve hundred.
And a lot of times, you know, there's either a comedy condo that they could stay in or sometimes they have to pay for their own travel, their flight for sure.
So, I mean, you're making no money doing this.
But I mean, it's a lot of money at that time.
You're like, I'm making twelve hundred dollars no money doing this. But, I mean, it's a lot of money at that time. You're like, I don't know, making $1,200.
That's crazy for a gig.
And so you're doing those shows, and you're just a guy there that weekend.
No one's coming to see you.
And then you eventually want to be the guy where they're like,
when someone calls the comedy club and they're like, oh, this guy's there.
And they're like, oh, you know what?
I think I've heard of that guy.
Because you know how many times if you call the comedy club, you're like, no, I remember that they're like oh you know what i think i've heard of that guy because you know many times if you caught a comic you're like no i remember that
he's the guy remember we were watching it like you want to they don't really know you yeah but
they do they're like i've seen you're at least in the atmosphere and that's what you're trying
to eventually get to that so then you get to where you're selling out the whole weekend
to then theaters and now people are there to see you and so but like look
that's still i still got a long way to go you know uh but yeah it's been a i mean it's been
it's a long it's a long grind it's a waiting game what's some like milestones in your career
where you're like you know what this is this is a next step this is where i should be going this
is huge i bought a watch for most of them. So I've always done that.
And the watch gets better.
I would say, I mean, the first one was,
the CMT was big, but Conan getting a late night.
That year, 2008 was my first big year.
I did Conan, live at Gotham on Comedy Central,
and Montreal Comedy Festival, New Faces.
And so that was a huge year for me.
That was the first like, wow.
It was like you thought, I mean, I thought I made it.
And what's funny is no one realizes too,
when you get to that point, you then go back to,
I had a day job.
You just do that stuff and then you go you're not making any money i mean you made maybe
honestly maybe two thousand dollars like out of those two tv things and then the the uh doing
the just for laughs montreal cost me money i had to pay for the some like all the like i didn't get any money there uh so 2008 was
the first good good thing and then i think when i did the hour of the commissary special was a big
deal and i bought uh like a watch like a thousand dollar watch or something was like crazy like that
you know but it was like insane to buy something like you know uh that and
uh but that was like i bought it for that moment like to be like yeah i like to wear it on what
i'm doing and then it's also like it watches a good thing that sits and like it's a reminder of
like that was my full-time magic that was my my comedy special. So that was a big career moment for me.
I mean, doing all those Tonight shows were big.
But then I would say, you know, the stand-ups and then the last special were, you know,
those are the big kind of leaps where, you know, you did stuff.
I think this podcast is setting me back, to be honest.
But so this is the downfall.
Jump the shark. Yeah. I remember when you did bonnaroo that was like yes yeah so the cool events i've done i mean
like we have a lot of them are in here but uh yeah doing i mean i mean the cool stuff is like
bonnaroo was gigantic being able to do bonnaroo and being being in that group because you're
trying to get to be like, I'm cool.
I did Bonnaroo 2010.
Eminem was the headliner the year I did it.
They misspelled my name on all the stuff I have from it.
My name's misspelled.
And maybe some of it's not because someone, they caught it,
but half of it is.
So Bonnaroo was big. I mean mean the cool like opening for chris rock you know when i went to fallon when i when fallon saw
me when i did the the late night show so when i the first time i met fallon fallon was at the
at the stand i was performing i haven't told this story right on so the first how i met fallon
is i feel like we're just dragging on is it is this all good i think it's very interesting yeah uh so the first time how i met fallon how i
got into the relationship with him we were i was funny we moved i just moved to new york 2012
i mean moved to la so i talked about that quote anytime you start feeling comfortable it's time
to make a change.
That was about when I read the quote.
That's when I moved to LA.
I was feeling comfortable in New York and I wanted to change it up and put myself in a different scene.
Uh,
so I moved to LA.
So then I came back to New York cause I was doing,
you'd always do new year's Eve shows in New York.
And,
uh,
so there was going to be the last year I go to do new year's Eve shows.
And usually you'd perform at like Caroline's.
Caroline's was awesome to perform at new year's Eve cause you'd get to perform and then right before the ball drops i
mean honestly two minutes before that ball drops we just walk out on time square and watch the
ball drop and then go back downstairs so if it was freezing outside you would just be like hey
it's dropping in 40 seconds and you go okay and you walk out yeah there it goes and then so i've watched the ball drop and everybody else in times square is just stuck out they've been out
there for 12 hours already yeah at least and then but you would but if you ever a little fun thing
if you ever want to go see the ball drop i think they still obviously go do it where they uh but
go to carolines you get to watch a comedy show go to the late show and you get to watch the comedy
show and then they walk you upstairs i'd make sure call and make sure that i'm pretty sure they do But go to Caroline's. You get to watch a comedy show. Go to the late show. And you get to watch the comedy show.
And then they walk you upstairs.
I'd make sure.
Call them and make sure that.
I'm pretty sure they do.
It wasn't just a comic thing.
But then you can walk up.
And that way you're not stuck in that whole nonsense where you're waiting.
So anyway, so I go back for New Year's Eve.
And I was going to be doing a show on the 30th somewhere.
I go back for New Year's Eve and I was going to be doing a show on the 30th somewhere or December 30th I was gonna be doing a show in like Massachusetts and there was a massive snowstorm
so if the show gets canceled I shouldn't even be there so now I'm there uh I go I used to do a
podcast with Giannis Papas and Chris Laker it could be better it was funny enough that's funny
to talk about it now uh so this 2012 we
doing this podcast uh and i go i'm like look we need to record a final episode i was like we never
recorded a final episode we just stopped doing it and so i was like so we're going to go to the
stand i'm not doing this show now we're going to do this final episode so we go and we're going to
record this final so we all come down there uh no one's i'm doing that show later on and we're going to record this. So we all come down there. I'm doing that show later on.
We're down in the showroom.
So we get done doing it, and Fallon just walks in.
And the show's not started, and I was like, hey, what's up, man?
I'm on stage.
Never met him.
Never met him.
And I'm on stage talking in the microphone and just talking to Laker
and Giannis like this where we're all making fun of each other.
And then Fallon walks in. I just remember looking up up and i was like what's up man you know like that's
crazy yeah and like you know like and then seeing laker and we're all like you know and he's like
hey uh he like lived in the neighborhood at the time or something and he's like i just wanted to
i heard about this club i wanted to come check it out. And I'm like, yeah, it's cool, man. And so we just, we sat in the back and like he had a beer and like, you know, I think
we just had a beer and talked and he knew Nashville Zanies.
He knew Dorfman and Zanies.
And so that's when I was from Nashville.
I just moved to LA.
And, you know, we just kind of talked until the show started and he was like, I'm going
to watch some of the show.
And he's hosting late night with the family, you know, uh he's a comic and he didn't want to go up or
anything so everybody kind of goes up now because founds are the guy yannis gets uh like everybody
wants to go up now and so and he stayed and then so i went on and we all know he's there so obviously
since we know he's there we are bringing it like it know, it's, I mean, I am doing my best of my best.
Old, none of it matters.
I'm not trying a new joke.
I am trying to murder.
And so I get off stage and we just see him leave.
I didn't talk to him.
He just leaves.
And I was like, all right.
And I knew, I know he watched me. Like, you know, we're asking, like, did he watch me? And i was like all right and but i knew i know he watched me like you know
we're asking like did he watch me and we're like yeah and then it's so funny the guy uh after uh
anthony zinhauser uh it's comic buddy anthony but we always made i would always make fun of him
but he performed you know as if fallon was in the crowd, his heart out and Fallon just gone.
I know,
but he had no idea.
It's just so funny.
I mean, I've done,
I've been in those situations too.
You don't know.
And I mean,
but it's just so funny to be like,
how was it?
It's like he left.
Uh,
so he,
we,
uh,
we get,
he gets,
so Fallon gets done.
He leaves. Don't hear from him whatever i moved to
la uh met fallon i was like that's cool i do conan in la get done doing conan next day uh
fallon called my agent at the time manager at the time and then uh was like he wanted me to ask me to do
the late night he's like you want to do uh we want to offer you a date for late night and it was the
first time i ever got the date before they saw the set wow so i remember that like being like i've
never been i could always get on these sits i mean i was always going to get approved with being clean
i maybe i can't say walmart or starbucks or something but uh i was the first one i ever
got the offer just being like hey just do a set and uh we'll give you here's the date we want you
to do and then just send us your set when you're ready which is the where i'm at now with the
tight show which is very i'm still and now i never get over it i never it never is past you know i
think about it every time that it's insane that i can get a date uh i mean i can
almost tell them when i want to do it but i can get a date without doing i it's it blows me away
because how much you have to go through to get a late night set to do all of this stuff and it's
it's i mean i it none of it's ever lost on me and i truly truly think about it every single time and it means the and it mean it it's it's that would
be a milestone and a huge achievement for me to be able to do this without having to
jump through the i mean that's and i and i think about it every every every time i do it that's
awesome so he uh they asked me to say i just did Conan, and there's a rule that you can't, you got to be three months,
you can't do another late night.
It's not a rule, but it's-
Is this because of your managers?
Yeah, yes, exactly.
That's what they call me, and they go, told you, there is a rule.
No, but they don't want you to do another show, have done another show.
Okay.
And I think it might be six months, but maybe it was three at the time on a different network it's and it's not it's not a uh like a viacom or like some
nbc rule it's just the you're like you're just a late night set we're not gonna have you because
you just did it like i never did kimmel i was supposed i got asked to do kimmel and the day i
got asked to do kimmel or that they got asked to do Kimball or that they wanted
me to do Kimball, I did Conan. And so then that relationship kind of just went away and I never
did. So now I'm a, I'm a tonight show guy. So like I, that you do switch over into like, I'm just
doing a tonight show. I'm not doing anybody else. Like I just do him. Why would I go anywhere else?
Uh, and I, that's once I started doing with Fountain, like this moment,
it was like when I was kind of like, I asked one time about doing Conan.
I was like, oh, Conan wants me to do something.
And they were like, I mean, you know, I think they gave me another set.
They were like, just do another one with us.
And then I was like, okay.
Like it's a cool, Ray Romano had that with Letterman.
When Leno was going to be done with The Tonight Show
and Ray was going to go on Letterman,
he went to the – he wanted to go.
Leno was like one of his last shows.
And so he asked the guy to produce.
And Ray Romano – everybody loves Raymond.
If people don't know, Dave Letterman produced Everybody Loves Raymond.
I didn't know that.
Yeah, so that's how they got together. Ray did the show they've learned made that sitcom and then they got on it so he
always could only do letterman because it's like that's the deal and all he would want to i mean
but when tonight when jay lennon was retiring everybody loves raymond's all been off the air
a few years he uh asked the producer he's like hey you think dave letterman will care if i go
do tonight i mean i'm friends with jay like you know think Dave Letterman will care if I go do Tonight Show I mean I'm friends
with Jay
like you know
it's his final show
do care if I go
and the producer
went to Ray
and said
you can do
whatever you want
you know
but I will tell you
that it will break
his heart
and so
the producer said that
so it's not like
I don't know
but the producer said
my opinion is
that you can do
whatever you want but it will break his heart and then ray's like i mean i can't you know i can't do
that then uh so there's you there's a mix of you know we have that where you're like you should be
loyal to your guys anyway so anyway so i'm ray i get asked to do that show i go fallon also first
day they call and ask me to do late show with Fallon. The next day
they call and they say they want to talk to me about producing a sitcom. So this was my first
time ever being in that world. And so he wanted to do Letterman, where it's like, we make an
airbed of Dramon. Obviously mine have never gone. This was eight years ago. We did it twice. They
never went anywhere. But the night when he was going to come watch me perform, I fly to New York.
I'm performing at Gotham Comedy Club. And he was going to come watch me before I fly to New York. I'm performing at Gotham comedy club. And, uh, he was going to come watch me perform. They were like, let me watch him again. I've only seen him once. Let me make sure this
guy is good. Uh, so it, that was, I remember going to the comedy club. It was, uh, like a
comedy juice. If you ever go do shows in New York or LA, if you watch shows,
they do these shows,
comedy juice. And they're all,
they're notoriously known as amazing shows.
And they're both at the improv.
And then I think the,
I think still the Gotham.
And so I was doing that show and they were,
I remember going in there and they're like,
when do you want to go out?
Cause Fallon was coming down to watch.
So it was like,
everybody's kind of like,
and everybody's like tense.
Everybody's like,
you know, and so they're like, ask me to go up? Cause Fallon was coming down to watch. So it was like, everybody's kind of like, and everybody's like tense. Everybody's like, you know,
it's,
and so,
uh,
they're like,
ask me to go up.
I went up,
I think the host won first comic than me.
Cause we didn't want to,
I figured I was,
I can't make him stay the whole time.
Yeah.
That's a good spot.
And it's a good spot on a show.
Host goes up,
have one comic go up and then I get to go up and I do,
I was going to do like 15 minutes.
And I was,
I go, I went up and then I get to go up and I do, let's go do like 15 minutes. And I always say,
I go,
I went up and that was probably the,
uh,
and one of the bigger shows of my career as far as not a special or something,
but as far as who's,
what's,
what's kind of at stake.
Yeah.
And,
uh,
so I went up and did the set and I remember,
I always say it was like the set went so good.
It was as if the audience knew how important it was for me. It's like they, it went unbelievable. And I always say, it was like the set went so good, it was as if the audience knew how important it was for me.
It's awesome.
It went unbelievable.
And I mean, I murdered.
Like, it was just, I mean, just unreal.
And then, so then we went and hung out after.
And then, you know, that's where that relationship began.
There's been a lot of rambling.
That's all right.
That's not rambling at all.
Let me ask you,
you're very new into comedy for what,
four or five years?
Yeah.
What's like a milestone
that you feel like you've had?
First time hosting at a club.
Yep.
First time featuring at a club
and then first time headlining.
I remember all those.
Oh, yeah.
And I felt that
that was a significant step.
They are.
They are.
They're gigantic.
Yeah. You got to do the Grand Ole Opry?
Yeah.
Doing the Opry, yeah.
That was cool.
That probably didn't even register at the time how cool of a rare of a thing that was.
But looking back, yeah, for sure.
Yeah.
How about you?
You got?
The first time, no, he didn't.
Knew my name.
I remember that was a big thing.
I bet you y'all should have opened with y'all's stories.
They should have done y'all's first.
I'm not trying to make...
It's funny to be like...
I mean, I'm like...
And that's what I'm about to find.
You're like, Brian, Aaron, go ahead.
You're like, well, MC did a club.
What, our milestones?
Yeah.
I mean, we should have done them in a reverse order.
I know.
I know.
But go through yours, Bates.
I'd love to hear them.
We're in Channel 5.
You said that very sarcastically. Yeah. Go through yours, Bates. I'd love to hear them. Quit in Channel 5. You said that very sarcastically.
Go through yours, Bates.
I'd love to hear them.
Let's go through them.
We got time.
It'll be real quick.
Go ahead.
That was very mean.
Sorry.
No.
I mean, I don't.
Speed through them.
You're right.
I don't want to go through them after yours because it does sound ridiculous.
I'm joking.
I'm not talking about mine.
It was just very.
I can't see the comedy of it.
I just went on this long thing.
Yeah. And then you just throw Aaron.'re like Aaron go ahead what's yours Aaron
and he's like I mean I MC'd
featured and hosted
you probably remember those same moments too right
those are huge moments I'm not saying those are big
those are moments to have
those are gigantic moments I remember
my first MCing was at Zany's in Chicago
piano on stage
first time featuring I think was for Angela Johnson My first emceeing was at Zany's in Chicago. Yeah. Piano on stage.
First time featuring, I think it was for Angela Johnson,
on the road.
I remember doing those.
It was the first time really going to clubs on the road and then headlining.
One was Montreal, and I went back to the,
I think the place, comedy.
Maybe it's Comedy Works, but it's not that comedy works,
but it's in Montreal.
And the guy,
and Dan Shack,
he opened for me
and I barely had enough time
to do headlining.
I bombed super hard
and it was real
and it got,
and the audience could tell,
it was like sad.
And I just went
and I was like,
I can't,
I was like,
I shouldn't be headlining.
I can't,
I don't have enough time. I can't talk for this long. And I just went and I was like, I shouldn't be headlining. I don't have enough time.
I can't talk for this long.
And I mean, I've seen that guy.
I want to say JB or something like that.
I've seen him recently.
And he still talks about it.
I was like, dude, I bombed so hard that first week.
And he's like, I know.
It was real bad.
And I mean, he was uncomfortable. Just Shaq, he would destroy. bombed so hard that first week and he's like i know it was real bad like uh and i mean i mean
it was uncomfortable yeah just shacky would destroy and i just couldn't i just didn't have
enough time you know it was it was almost like it was too soon it was too you know but yours
quitting working was a big deal yeah well yeah that's true when i got to the point where i day
job status when your day jobs get to go away, that's a gigantic deal in comedy.
Yeah.
When I quit my job and could go full time, that was obviously a big, we were talking
about that downstairs before the show, because the next day you and I went on the road to
Louisville.
Yeah.
And did shows together.
Yeah.
And yeah, that was a big one for sure.
I mean, I remember same things, hosting, first time at Zany's, featuring first time at Zany's, headlining yeah, that was a, that was a big one for sure. I mean, I remember same things hosting first time as A&E is featuring for some of his A&E
headlining and all that.
I remember I did a show with, uh, Henry Cho and then afterwards we went out to eat like
group of us.
And I was like, man, this is a big deal.
Like, you know, um, you know, hanging out with this legendary comedian and, and, uh,
I just remember thinking, wow, this is – I'm doing it.
Yeah.
I'm doing it.
When you feel like you're in it, you're – when I was at the Cellar,
when you're hanging out, when I got passed at the club,
which passed means you were accepted and you can perform there,
and I got to sit at that back table, and you're allowed to sit back there.
Sitting at that table for the first time a big moment of it?
It's huge.
Yeah.
I mean, getting to go there.
I mean, it's funny to go there now, too.
And, like, now when I go, I mean, I get to go.
I mean, I let them know.
I always say I'm coming.
I'm definitely not Burr or Chappelle.
Like, I can't walk in, and I go next.
You wouldn't do a three-hour set there?
No, no, no.
But, like, I would text them before I come that week, and I go next. You wouldn't do a three hour set there? No, no, no, no. But like I would text them before I come that week
and I'm like, hey, I'm coming in town
and I usually can get spots.
I mean, the seller's the best.
I mean, you know, and so it's being able
to get to that table, you know,
I mean, you would not sit at it.
I mean, it's an enormous, enormous deal
that I took very seriously. I would never, I would never want to sit at it i mean it was yeah it was it's it's an enormous enormous deal that i took very seriously
i would never i would never want to sit at it like before it was like no i can't like you know
because you wanted that was it was what you wanted i didn't move when i left new york my thing was i
wanted to get passed at every club and uh the comic strip was the last one first one i auditioned for
too first one i auditioned for and the last one i got past that
and i got past that it honestly maybe six months to a year before i left yeah part of it i i kind
of was getting on stage so i didn't always go try but it was at the end i was like well i want to
be able to say i've played every club. And I was past that every club.
And that was the last one.
Let's get to a topic that I can hang with you on, bombing.
Yeah.
Let's talk about some of our best bombing moments,
either us or friends.
Yeah.
Like what's a good one for you?
Because how – what are we at? I think we're at about a minute 45.
Yeah.
I mean hour 45, excuse me.
Hour 45.
All right.
How many – this might be a two-parter. Okay. I think we're at about a minute 45. I mean, hour 45, excuse me. All right.
This might be a two-parter.
I think we could do a two-parter on this.
What are we at?
Well, as far as questions? We've got a lot more questions.
A lot more.
I think it's enough.
I want to try this.
We're going to try a two-parter.
We can do the bombing.
We're going to end on this bombing stories,
and then I think we're going to roll into – I want to try a two-parter.
Okay.
I don't want to do two and a half hours.
You want to save the bombing?
Should we?
Why don't we save the bombing?
Let's save the bombing.
Yeah, because we got a good run.
Yeah, this will be a – I think bombing we can talk about for a while.
Bombing's great because I love bombing.
Yeah.
And there's been a bunch of them so what's uh
um
where do you
where do you think
comedy's headed now
or what's some
like next steps
you think
so yeah
we're uh
I think
uh
I'm pretty excited
about this two-parter
yeah
and then if people
want to get questions in
this is gonna be
the who shot JR
yeah
I have a seizure
later today yeah which I've been seeing stuff in the corners Shot JR. Yeah. That's right. I have a seizure later today.
Yeah.
Which I've been seeing stuff in the corners of my eye.
It could be hunking up.
I looked that up.
Could be what?
Sometimes when you turn.
Floaters?
I'll see either two lines or like some flashes.
I've read some of those migraines.
Yeah.
But my head doesn't hurt.
I'm sure everybody will tell me what it is next week.
It'll be in the comments.
I don't know.
I see a red dot.
They're like, no, it's Brian's nose every time you look at it.
You know, everybody told us they were like,
someone there like, how did you not bring it up?
I never noticed.
Did you not, like when your nose was red that one time?
So your friends are just telling you like,
how in the world did you not talk about that?
Why would I bring that up about a friend on a podcast? Thank you, you aaron i don't know so he doesn't get trashed in front of
everybody uh i never noticed that stuff yeah you're around me a lot so i think it's just
the norm yeah i i was like i didn't i mean my abigail my sister was like how do you not
it was so distracting was like i can't believe that you didn't.
And I was like, well, I don't know.
So I, yeah, I didn't, it never crossed my mind.
Anyway, I don't know where to say.
Well, I'm talking about where comedy's headed or what's.
Okay, where comedy's headed.
I think, as I said, I think comedy is becoming a lot more mainstream.
When I first started, when I was in New York City, starting for the first time,
the system how you came up through New York was to go to the comedy clubs.
You would do the comedy clubs, and you would want to get past the comedy store,
you know, Gotham, Stan, all the ones I've named,
Caroline's Comic Strip, Dangerfield.
And you'd want to go, and you'd want to go do all of them,
and you'd want to be past
all those clubs and you could go do other shows but there wasn't a ton of other shows i would
there was a show called refifi and that was a big like kind of alternative show like i remember
zach galvanakis was there i have an email from john mulaney john used to book that show
and nick kroll would nick kroll uh hosted it and uh and so there. And so that was like the only alternative show that you could do outside of comedy club.
It's in Crashing, I'm pretty sure.
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
And so that's the only show that you would do that was outside of comedy club.
And then those shows started popping up, those alt shows, kind of whatever, where you'd have to do comedy clubs.
So after I was in New York for four or five, six like i mean people were able to do shows where you're like oh i don't
even have to go to a comedy club i mean there's bars everywhere doing shows and everybody's running
shows and so then that just started spreading it out so i think comedy i think stand up and i don't
know maybe the audience it'd be interesting to hear what some audience got members uh what they think like how like just be
like how super aware you of comedy of stand-up comedy to how not aware you know what i mean like
do you know that there's openers do you know that there's any i'll be i would actually be very
curious to see what uh some audience thinks of that stuff how much do they know you
know all right how much are they tracking how many comics do they know outside of me if you know me
do you know mike rabiglia gaffigan right do you know bird do you know uh dan soda do you know
like you know i got a mix of people that are going to know me that you know like a lot of people that
know seinfeld and gaffigan are not going to know
they won't know me like they might you know i'm assuming those are your massive guys that's your
walmart that's your they they know who they are right versus you know if you get to know if you
know me a lot of times it's like you will know a lot of comics because you're that means you're
in the comedy yeah is the fact that you're not,
you're,
you know,
what's your word?
Zeitgeist.
Is that the word?
Zeitgeist.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Uh,
you're not,
isn't that,
is that the proper way to use it?
I kind of forgot how you use it.
It's in your peripheral.
It's,
it's yes.
Things,
you know?
Yes.
So I think now standup is starting to become,
uh,
with Netflix and people wanting to watch it. I mean, most people didn't watch comedy at all. And I think now theyup is starting to become with Netflix and people are wanting
to watch it. I mean, most people didn't watch comedy at all.
And I think now they're watching comedy.
I think they're now checking it out and it's it's very more attainable.
You got these podcasts, a lot more people talking a lot more, you know?
So I would think that I mean,
I think comedy is in another boom right now, you know? I mean, I mean,
this pandemic kind of crushed it, but I think comedy is in a pretty big boom.
I think it's, you know, a gigantic upswing.
It's a good thing.
I remember being down.
You know, it's funny.
I remember like 2008 when the bank stuff happened and the economy was bad.
I remember comedy being great,
which was very funny to think.
I remember people needed to laugh.
And so I remember shows being really good there in 2008
because people just wanted,
they needed a break.
And I mean,
I think you're probably into that stuff now
where it's like the world is heavy.
It's deep.
It's a lot of stuff.
And so people need to breaks
and they need to be like,
you know, that's why, again, that's why friends and Seinfeld and all, that's why those shows are getting just devoured.
Yeah.
Because people are like, I need a separate, I mean, it is seeping into every form of entertainment
I watch has this nonsense of just the world falling apart.
Yeah.
Not that's, that's not a nonsense, but you know just the world falling apart yeah not this that's not nonsense but you know
the world so it's like everybody's like well i need to say it and all this and so i think comedy
now is like that old stuff's getting looked up quick you know because people need stuff they
need to be you know so i think comedy is in a great place i mean would you agree would you
yeah yeah i hope so and I think you're right.
I think the world needs comedy now more than ever.
And people are kind of seeking it out.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Stand-up, I think, is better than it's obviously ever been.
Do you think stand-up ever gets like music?
Does it ever get?
In what way?
No.
I mean.
Oh, you mean as big as music?
Yeah.
I don't.
No.
Yeah.
It just can't.
No.
Because it's not passive entertainment it's active
entertainment it's geek there's no background comedy yeah it's just impossible yeah i have a
lot of people say they listen to my comedy to sleep at night uh so i haven't got very passive
comedy so you want to save these world records they're kind of yeah yeah yeah let's go let's uh
yeah because we're going to be able to do another hour and a half yeah yeah yeah let's go let's uh yeah because we're
going to be able to do another hour and a half on this so let's easily let's just save it we've
done a long one and i want to do a part two we're gonna do comedy part two obviously this is our
forte will forte met him once uh met him after the show once he saw me at uh where was it what's
the other alt show that the big awesome show that was in new york knitting factory uh no
uh before that uh man to get on it was huge uh find out in part two oh okay whiplash
and will forte was uh if you did whiplash it was unbelievable uh and it was just a huge deal to get to do it. And I remember we did, I did a show with Bob Odenkirk.
He was there.
Oh, wow.
And then Louie, Louie CK.
I know I mentioned, I know people, you know, whatever.
But this, like, Louie was doing, and I mean,
that's the first time Louie talked to me.
Like, he was very nice to me, watched my set,
and then, like, was like, you should,
what if you try this?
I was doing a night show again.
I was, like, running it. And he's he's like you trying this and try it this way like actually
talked to me about the structure of jokes and that's awesome and uh but uh yeah will for days
after the show once and i and like i wasn't thinking and then i ran all right i got done
he like came up and was like man that was an awesome set i was like i appreciate it man
and like pat it on the back and just kind of kept walking. And then like two blocks later, someone's like, hey, you know, that was Will Forte.
And I was like, was it?
Like, you know, I was like, should I go talk to him again?
And they're like, it's over now.
Oh, you didn't know who it was?
No, I didn't.
I mean, it was.
Yeah, I didn't think about it.
It's not.
Will Forte is like a regular guy.
Like, yeah.
Yeah.
Looks like a regular guy.
It's not like it's.
And you're just in the mindset of like, I appreciate it man thank you yeah you're walking through the crowd like everybody's
going great job great job thank you thank you he's like hey great says i appreciate it thanks
for coming out dude i go thanks for coming out dude make sure you tip the waitstaff and stuff
you know uh and then just leave and someone's like that's full for today's like was it like
never thought of him never hadn't spoke to him since then him and Jerry Seinfeld uh uh
alright
so yeah
part two
that's fun
I'm excited about part two
yeah
so uh
yeah if you have any comedy questions
that we did not answer
this is what's great
you need to send them in now
you can uh
so maybe we will be able
to get to them
uh
and we have a lot more stuff
uh
to talk about
but uh
again as always
thank you guys
uh
for listening
always remember none of this is lost on us
we truly appreciate it all the ratings all the
stuff that you're helping us get as we
move up in this
podcast world and
since live comedy's dead
comedy's
since it's dead
so we love you all
thank you very much and we'll see you next week.
Thanks, everybody, for listening to the Nate Land Podcast.
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